After back-to-back finishes of Wuliji Buren and Guido Cannetti that put him back on track to crack the bantamweight top 15, Marlon Vera had the perfect fight to achieve that goal in the form of Thomas Almeida. But when Almeida was forced from the UFC 235 bout due to injury, “Chito” was a man without an opponent.
“I was excited for the Almeida fight,” said Vera. “I was ready to go, and I was willing to bleed and willing to go crazy in there to make it happen for the fans. So, of course, I was looking forward to taking him out and taking his spot.