Athletes
Marlon Vera | A New Chapter For 'Chito'
After Years Of Training Camp Consistency, Marlon “Chito” Vera Switched Things Up In A Bid To Turn His Form Around And Return To Bantamweight Contention Once Again.
Marlon Vera has experienced the highs and lows that come with being an elite-level UFC fighter. And right now, he’s stuck in a rut, and looking to fight his way out.
Former bantamweight title challenger Vera lost out to then-champion Sean O’Malley as he ended up on the wrong side of a unanimous decision verdict at UFC 299, but few could have imagined how things would have panned out for “Chito” since.
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Since that title fight defeat, Vera has maintained a sky-high strength of schedule, facing former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo, fellow contender Aiemann Zahabi and rising contender David Martinez in the two years that followed. But, despite being competitive in all four contests and taking his opponents the distance, on each occasion the scorecards sided with them, not him.
It means that Vera has slipped out of the Meta UFC bantamweight rankings, while dropping down to 10th in the media rankings, and he heads into Crypto.com UFC 331 in Los Angeles this weekend looking to snap a 4-fight skid.
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Looking back at those four defeats, Vera hasn’t tried to hide, as he put the blame on those losses firmly on his shoulders and placed the onus on himself to do something significant in a bid to turn things around.
“Just like not doing enough,” he said. “I'm responsible for that. You know, even if they're close fights, sometimes it just comes down to how I can get better and make the right decisions to like improve and be ready for another fight.”
That assessment led Vera to make the biggest decision of his career so far as he opted to part ways with longtime coach Jason Parillo and set up a new fight camp. After such a long relationship, it was a tough decision for Vera to make, but at this stage in his career, he felt something different was needed, and the results gave him the impetus to make the change.
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“Sometimes, you get comfy where you’re at, and if nothing bad happens, it's hard to make changes like that,” he explained. “But then I look at my career and look at the results, and I can only try, right? So, I feel good with the changes, and I'm happy to be able to showcase them on Saturday night.”
Vera’s new camp has seen him training alongside Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champions and UFC BJJ grapplers Jalen Fonacier and Kennedy Maciel as well as fellow UFC bantamweight Raul Rosas Jr, who he’s developed a strong relationship with during their time training together.
“We’ve been pushing each other for a while now, and I'm just excited,” he said. “Somehow we bonded, right? I always said I never make friends with ‘35ers, and we became really close at one point, and we said, you know what, we shook hands, and we're not fighting, and we’ve literally moved, all together, into my gym… Sometimes me and his dad, we laugh. I forget sometimes how young he is. I can see what we both bring to the table. His youth, how good he is, he’s talented, and then with my experience, we just mix well, and we’ve trained really hard – lots of sparring, lots of training – and we’re feeling good. He helps me, I help him, and they’re coming [to support] me, so I’ll be there for them, too.”
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Vera faces Charles Jourdain on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena in a bout that forces the Ecuadorian to defend his spot against a dangerous, in-form fighter who is looking to break into contention after winning his last three fights in the Octagon. Vera says the matchup makes sense, and he’s excited to step into the Octagon to throw down with the Canadian.
Marlon Vera | Top Finishes
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Marlon Vera | Top Finishes
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“He's an exciting fighter, and the matchmaking did a good job of putting this one together, because he needs to move up and I need to recover what I've been losing. So we'll collide in the center and see what happens,” he said. “If the fight gets crazy and becomes a brawl, it’s a fight of wills, right? Who’s really willing to get hurt and go deep in order to win? But I feel confident in the work that I have put in for this camp, and I’m really excited about just seeing how I look and how I perform after all these changes, and all this time working hard.”
The changes Vera has made are the main story around his 27th UFC fight, with the Octagon veteran keen to find that little bit extra to get him back in the win column and setting his sights at the top once again.
Marlon Vera: 'I'm Going To Put Everything On The Line' | Crypto.com UFC 331
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Marlon Vera: 'I'm Going To Put Everything On The Line' | Crypto.com UFC 331
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“I really wanna prove to myself that I have done everything in my power to get my hand raised, and I’m gonna fight as hard as I can to win this fight, because I really need it. So I’m gonna put everything on the line,” he said. “You get those shadows on your mind. You're like, ‘How I can get this right?’ But at the end of the day, I just [have to] throw everything aside and almost like let the past go and have this as a new path for me and see where II can really go.
“I know I work hard. I know I've done everything in my power. So at this point, it's just [time to] give it all and do everything I can to win.”
Crypto.com UFC 331: Van vs Pantoja 2 took place live from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California on September 19, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!