It's Chito Time; Marlon Vera Returns Against... Someone
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
It’s Chito Time, fellas.
Marlon Vera is back again this weekend, fighting at featherweight for the first time in a long time.
It can probably be surmised this weight jump is likely due to the circumstances rather than a permanent career change, given his current succes at bantam, and that whichever of two fighters he’s to face usually also plies their trade at 135lbs rather than 145.
Given the prevailing global conditions, it’s not surprising however that there is some weirdness involved; his initial opponent, Chinese blue-chip prospect Yadong Song may be denied permission to fight due to visa issues, despite already having successfully weighed in.
It would appear that Song’s team leader and erstwhile cornerman, UFC pioneer Urijah Faber has weighed in as a back up, although he weighed at 153lbs.
So, that would be two current bantamweights facing off, one at the weight class above and the other at the weight class above that.
Still, it’s arguable that Faber could be the gentler match-up of the two for Vera at this point; Faber’s game is a known quantity by now- lots of twitchy leg and hand feints, a big ole right hand and a strong wrestling bent, with a susceptibility to kicks.
However, Equadorian veteran Vera has faced all kinds, and has never failed to bring the noise.
He is relatively lanky for his division; lanky compared to a lot of the stacked-up bulldogs that occupy the bantamweight division anyway, and he uses his long limbs to great effect.
He throws easy, casual kicks to maintain distance, and his striking is nice and varied too; he has a nice line in bodypunching, having finished off Chinese rival Wuliji Buren with a lovely liver shot to begin his current five-fight winning streak.
However, and at the risk of damning with faint praise, Vera presents a mix of traits that make him both vulnerable and durable, rendering his fights all the more engaging.
Against aggressive striking, he has been pushed back in the past; he had to work past this problem against both Argentinian Guido Cannetti and Buren.
If he gets backed into a clinch against the fence, he can become a bit inert; in the Buren fight this was his biggest issue until he took his own clinch initiative and landed the fight ending liver punch.
And finally, when grappling, he’s shown a tendency to get turned over if his initial gambit doesn’t pay off; this has happened in both his most recent fights against Nohelin Hernandez and Andre Ewell. But his defensive grappling is savvy enough that in both instances he’s survived, and gone on to win.
In fact, while he’s lost, he’s never been stopped, and this durability is a large part of why he’s been so good to watch on his current - joint longest- win streak of five; he never seems to be phased hugely by an opponent exploiting these flaws.
Against Andre Ewell, he managed to snag a standing head-and-arm attempt while navigating a striking exchange.
He beat Weili Buren in the clinch having been dominated in the clinch up until then.
Against Guido Cannetti and Nohalin Hernandez he turned back a tide that was threatening to overwhelm him.
An adaptable fighter, once he ups his own aggression he he’s been able to not turn the fights around but win them all within the distance in a variety of ways. His last five wins are comprised of a straight KO, two TKOs and two rear-naked chokes.
So who really cares who he faces? The young Chinese dynamo or the old, teak-tough dog, you can bet Vera has something in his gangly repertoire to bring to bear.
The man is exciting, is what I’m saying. And despite his veteran status, he’s still only 27.
It’s worth keeping an eye on Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera.