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The five-round matchup between Marlon Vera and Rob Font, which headlined the UFC on ESPN: Font vs. Vera event on April 30, was seemingly jeopardized after Font missed weight. The American weighed in at 138.5 pounds, 2.5lbs over the 136lbs non-title bantamweight bout limit.
Regardless, Vera – who weighed in at 136lbs – agreed to the fight at a catchweight of 138.5lbs. Meanwhile, Font had to forfeit 20 percent of his purse to Vera, who won the bout via unanimous decision.
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Speaking to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Vera revisited his decision to fight Font. Vera recalled that after his opponent missed weight, UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby spoke to him and noted that he could turn down the bout if he wasn’t comfortable fighting the heavier Font. ‘Chito’ recalled being ready for Font regardless of what his opponent weighed:
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“I’m like, ‘Sean, you know you’re talking to me, right?’ He was like, ‘No, I know. I’m just being professional. I’m doing my job.’ I’m like, ‘I appreciate you for that.’ I’m like, ‘That motherf****r can be a 100 pounds bigger; I’m fighting tomorrow night. Because I don’t find a way out.’”
“Be like, ‘Oh, f**k yeah! No fight? Ooh! Pressure is out. We’ll go home. We’ll have my purse.’ But f**k that. You don’t get the experience. You don’t get to get your feet wet on the deep waters. You don’t get to championship rounds.”
Marlon Vera said he told Shelby that if Font collapsed while trying to make weight, he’d fight any replacement opponent. Vera highlighted that he was open to facing anyone from the bantamweight (135lbs) division or the featherweight (145lbs) division on that card.
Watch Vera’s conversation with Ariel Helwani in the video below:
Marlon Vera on a potential rematch against arch-rival Sean O’Malley
Marlon Vera addressed the possibility of facing longtime rival ‘Suga’ Sean O’Malley in a rematch before his fight against Rob Font. Vera beat O’Malley via first-round technical knockout at UFC 252 in August 2020, courtesy of 'Suga' suffering a mid-fight leg injury. O’Malley has consistently claimed that he’s still a better fighter than Vera and that ‘Chito’s win over him was a fluke.
Speaking to Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole, ‘Chito’ asserted that he’d accept the rematch if the UFC offered it to him:
“I don’t have a space in my head for all the clout, all the – You know what I’m saying? I’m a fighter. And I already knocked him out. If you want it, then come and get some.”
Watch the interview with Marlon Vera below:
