Marlon Vera’s best-case scenario came to life Saturday at UFC 292 when both he and Sean O'Malley achieved wins, setting up a potential rematch for the bantamweight belt.
Vera (21-8-1 MMA, 15-7 UFC) is the only fighter to hold an MMA victory over newly crowned 135-pound king O’Malley (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC), who dethroned Aljamain Sterling with a second-round TKO at TD Garden. Earlier on the card, “Chito” earned a unanimous decision win over Pedro Munhoz.
The two results set a timeline in motion for a rematch of Vera’s first-round TKO of O’Malley at UFC 252 in August 2020. “Sugar” called out Vera in the octagon and pointed to UFC 296 on Dec. 16 in Las Vegas as a potential timeline for the rematch. Vera is clearly down for it, and urged the UFC matchmakers to send him a contract to get the deal done (via X):
Send me contact ok
— C H🖕🏽T O🇪🇨V E R A (@chitoveraUFC) August 20, 2023
Send me contract ok
Fighting for a world tittle very soon. pic.twitter.com/NWakx6CUkl
— C H🖕🏽T O🇪🇨V E R A (@chitoveraUFC) August 20, 2023
Fighting for a world tittle very soon.
O’Malley somewhat walked back his in-cage callout of Vera during the UFC 292 post-fight press conference, admitting he is torn on whether he should give his “annoying” rival a title opportunity. However, he said he thinks it’s a very winnable matchup that would make him plenty of money.
If O’Malley is keen to remain active as he claims, though, then Vera is the obvious candidate for his next fight. With top bantamweight contenders Merab Dvalishvili and Cory Sandhagen currently sidelines with injuries, it pushes Vera to the front of the queue with little controversy.
He’s ready for the opportunity, and said it won’t end with O’Malley avenging his only career loss, but rather falling to 0-2 in their head-to-head matchups.
“Let’s f*cking go,” Vera told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at the UFC 292 post-fight news conference. “I’ll beat his ass again.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.
