Marlon Chito Vera is set to return after his underwhelming and disappointing loss to Sean O’Malley in his maiden title opportunity last time out. In that fight, despite having a tonne of confidence heading into the bout and seemingly having the tools to get the job done, Vera was outclassed by the champion and it’s only his heart, grit and determination that kept him in the bout. A lesser man would have certainly looked for a way out in Miami at UFC 299.
He’ll look to get back to winning ways in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night, however, it won’t be an easy task. He steps in there against a man who is undefeated since moving up to bantamweight, the former flyweight champion, Deiveson Figueiredo.
Figueiredo is 2-0 at 135lbs since moving up last year. Firstly, he dominated contender, Rob Font to a decision before finishing former bantamweight king, Cody Garbrandt in the opening fight at UFC 300.
Difficult Situation for Vera
Chito enters Abu Dhabi under a lot of pressure. A loss here could knock him extremely far backwards in the rankings. Currently ranked #4, Vera could slip as far down as seven with a loss. If Umar Nurmagomedov puts on a real showcase in the main event, he could even take Vera’s position in the rankings.
The difficult aspect for Vera is that bantamweight is stacked. If he were to lose against his Brazilian foe, he’ll be the only fighter ranked in the top 10 (aside from Rob Font) coming off two straight losses.
Another difficult thing for Vera is that there are plenty of contenders at bantamweight, so even if he does get the victory, his showing against the champion last time out would suggest that he won’t get another shot at the belt any time soon.
Merab Dvalishvili is getting his deserved title shot at UFC Noche in September. Petr Yan got back in the win column when he outpointed Song Yadong earlier this year. Cory Sandhagen meets Umar Nurmagomedov in the main event of this Saturday’s card, with the winner positioning themselves handily in the title frame.
Irrespective of the title picture, Vera needs to win on Saturday to even be considered.
