Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera Calls Out UFC Fighter: ‘It’s About Time’

Getty Marlon 'Chito' Vera

Bantamweight contender Marlon “Chito” Vera is ready to get back onto the horse after his loss to Cory Sandhagen. And he’s eyeing former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan next.

Sandhagen and Chito headlined the promotion’s event in San Antonio, Texas, this past Saturday. It was a battle of two of the top fighters in arguably mixed martial art’s deepest division. Well, it was “Sandman’s” night he utilized his movement and crafty mix of wrestling and diverse striking to neutralize Chito’s offense.

Sandhagen (16-4) walked away with a split decision after the dust settled and will presumably take Vera’s No. 3 ranking when the UFC’s standings update this week. With the loss, Vera’s four-fight win streak was snapped and his professional record fell to 20-8-1.

When speaking with UFC commentator Michael Bisping post-fight inside the Octagon, Chito only blamed himself for the fight result. “I was as ready as I can get,” he said. “I was feeling good during training, and I just couldn’t get it started. This one is on me, no excuses.”

He took to Instagram a little while later and shared photos of himself backstage at the event, writing, “Lil bump in the road, it’s only over if I decide it. And we far from that. Be back soon.”

Well, the next day Chito raised the intensity. “I can’t even explain how much I hate losing but this is just energy to come back like a f****** man on a mission,” Vera tweeted. “It’s ok life sometimes tell u something it’s how u handle it. Just watch me come back.”

Vera Is Looking to Hand Yan His 4th Loss in a Row

Vera then turned his attention to “No Mercy.” “Yan it’s about time,” Chito tweeted.

Yan (16-5) is coming off a defeat of his own. He fought Merab Dvalishvili as part of the UFC main event on March 11 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and “The Machine” put on the performance of his career, outworking Yan for five rounds and taking home the unanimous decision nod. Yan has fallen on hard times inside the cage since winning the 135-pound strap in 2020. He’s 1-4 in his last five contests, which includes his current three-fight losing streak.

From a rankings standpoint, Vera versus Yan makes a lot of sense. Yan currently sits at at No. 4, and should Chito and Sandhagen swap spots, the Ecuadorian will be at No. 5.

Sandhagen & Vera’s Scorecard Had Viewers Scratching Their Heads

After the bantamweight showdown, it was clear that Sandhagen had won the fight due to the amount of damage he inflicted on Vera through the five frames — Sandman doubled Chito in terms of significant strikes landed (128 to 58). Further, Sandhagen landed three takedowns to Chito’s zero, and he had a total of 7:08 of control time.

So, when Bruce Buffer read out the scorecards, fans and pundits alike were scratching their heads. Judge Joel Ojeda scored the fight 48-47 in favor of Chito as he gave the Ecuadorian the last three rounds. Sal D’Amato called it 50-45 and Chris Lee ruled the fight 49-46, both in favor of Sandhagen.

“Confusing, but that’s like the sport of MMA,” Sandhagen said at the post-fight presser when asked about Ojeda’s scorecard. “Until the rules get fixed, it’s just going to keep happening.”