Marlon Vera is game to fight Cory Sandhagen next.
Vera (22-7-1 MMA, 14-6 UFC), who’s coming off a knockout win of Dominick Cruz in August, was in attendance for Sandhagen’s UFC Fight Night 210 headlining fight against Song Yadong on Saturday at the UFC Apex. “Chito” is ranked one spot below Sandhagen in the UFC’s bantamweight standings but has built momentum with four consecutive wins.
After slicing up Song with brutal elbows and forcing the doctor to stop the fight at the end of Round 4, Sandhagen (15-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) expressed interest in fighting Vera and Merab Dvalishvili.
“Well, if he wants it, he can get it,” Vera told the UFC of Sandhagen’s callout. “I’m not shying away from any fight. I’m a fighter, I fight anybody. I wanna be a world champion. If I wanna get there and get the belt, I don’t run away from no one.”
He continued, “It was a fun fight. I’m impressed by anybody. That’s how I push myself. Everybody in the UFC’s a hard fight. I’m a hard worker. Anybody can win at this level. Like Mac Miller said, ‘I don’t f*cking trip.’ I’m ready to go.”
Dvalishvili (15-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) plunged into top contention by beating former featherweight king Jose Aldo at UFC 278. He too has accepted Sandhagen’s callout.
My answer is yes of course. Let’s go 🦾 https://t.co/tA6mLlrPEl
— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil) September 18, 2022
