BOSTON – Marlon Vera believes his previous outing wasn’t representative of his abilities in the octagon, and will look to get back on track at UFC 292.
“Chito” Vera (20-8-1 MMA, 14-7 UFC) takes on Pedro Munhoz (20-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC) on the main card of the event at TD Garden. The bantamweight bout airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC/ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.
Munhoz wasn’t Vera’s original opponent, as he was supposed to face former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo. However, a shoulder injury forced Cejudo to withdraw from the fight. For “Chito,” the opponent doesn’t matter, as long as he gets the opportunity to compete without having to wait until the end of 2023.
“I was like, ‘Who’s available?’ They called me one day and said Pedro’s ready too, so f*ck it, why not,” Vera told reporters at Wednesday’s media day. “I mean, f*ck, you guys know: They can change the opponent on Saturday morning, I’m cool with that. I don’t trip like that. I like the fact that I have a fight. If it’s Cejudo, Pedro, or f*cking whoever from anywhere, I’m down.
“I’m glad I get to fight, I’m glad I get to get paid, I’m glad I get to compete. It’s still a tough guy, a dangerous fight, right? I could easily not take it, but I like to risk everything always. I’m the guy that will roll the dice, and I get lucky most of the time.”
Getting to compete is one thing, but moving past a split decision loss to Cory Sandhagen in March is perhaps even more important to Vera. The outcome of their UFC on ESPN 43 main event snapped a four-fight winning streak for “Chito,” and his performance drew plenty of criticism.
“In my opinion, I took that loss very personal,” Vera said. “I took that loss like it was pretty much my fault. That was a sh*t fight. Whenever I watch it I was like, ‘F*ck, that was a poor fight.’ I text Dana (White) myself like, ‘Sorry, dude. You don’t pay me to f*cking fight like that.'”
Vera won’t make any excuses for his performance that evening, but he says he felt off his game. When it came time to warm up on fight day, Vera said his timing and balance were not on point. When the cage door closed, he landed some good shots on his opponent, albeit at a much lower rate. According to UFC Stats, Sandhagen landed more total strikes (187) than Vera attempted (177).
Ultimately, Vera’s fight against Munhoz is about moving past that last outing and getting back into the bantamweight title conversation. A former opponent for Vera, Sean O’Malley, is challenging for the title in the main event again champion Aljamain Sterling. Should O’Malley pull off the upset and Vera win his fight, “Chito” believes the rematch with “Sugar” will be the next title fight in the division.
“F*ck it. The only way to get over with that feeling is winning this weekend,” Vera said. “So, that’s why I asked for this day, and I said send me a contract with a name, doesn’t matter who it is. This weekend, I’m going to make it better.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.
