Marlon Vera is on the verge of his first UFC bantamweight title struggle; Dominick Cruz travels to the highest of the mountain for the fourth time. Vera vs. Cruz headlines UFC Combat Night time because the promotion stops in San Diego, California on Saturday evening.
Vera (19-7-1) has her sights set on the throne and has no intention of arising quick towards one other former champion. “Chito” has endeared himself to MMA followers together with his no-nonsense angle and all-out strategy to motion. That cold-blooded persona was the right foil for Sean O’Malley’s badass charisma in 2020. A primary-round TKO over O’Malley earned Vera a significant struggle towards former UFC featherweight champion and legend Jose Aldo. Vera fell quick that evening however has since regained momentum with beautiful performances towards Davey Grant, Frankie Edgar and Rob Font. Vera, brimming with confidence, approaches the Cruz struggle with the identical perspective that has served her to date.
“I do not make monsters out of males,” Vera advised CBS Sports activities. “I do not assume there’s any unattainable struggle. However there are additionally no straightforward fights. It isn’t simpler than Rob Font. It isn’t simpler than Petr Yan. It isn’t simpler than [UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain] sterling. They’re all equally arduous. It is the way you present up, how you reside from begin to end within the camp. It isn’t about these guys. It is about me. It is about me being constant, being sharp and staying in form. That is my solely goddamn job.”
Cruz (24-Three) is at all times on the rebound. The inaugural UFC bantamweight champion will struggle in entrance of his hometown on Saturday evening for the primary time since 2009. After returning in 2020 to problem Henry Cejudo for the title when most believed the veteran retired in 2016 on account of accidents, Cruz regarded ok to struggle within the loaded division. A pair of wins over Casey Kenney and Pedro Munhoz have Cruz believing he’ll as soon as once more be in title competition.
“I can truthfully say that I made my 20s very tough with the decision-making, with the thoughts, with the thought course of, with the stress,” Cruz advised reporters at Wednesday’s press day. “I’ve heard so much that they appear calmer in interviews. I feel that is as a result of maturity of dwelling life and having features and losses and studying methods to be extra grateful for issues as an alternative of getting hooked up to issues. That actually helped me keep. to harm your self can be the mentality. You may manifest a variety of accidents simply by means of stress.
“Why would I do this if I wasn’t taking pictures for a championship?”
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Elsewhere on the cardboard, expectations are excessive for featherweight David Onama within the co-main occasion. Onama (10-1) bounced again from a debut loss to Mason Jones in main methods. A primary-round TKO of Gabriel Benitez and a second-round submission of Garrett Armfield renewed religion in his potential. Subsequent up is the eclectic Nate Landwehr, following an anaconda submission of Ľudovít Klein in October.
Plus, veteran girls’s heavyweights return in a particular match as Cynthia Calvillo and Nina Nunes meet at flyweight. Calvillo has fallen on arduous occasions since debuting on an extended profitable streak. The San Jose native has misplaced three straight fights, together with two by knockout. Now, she seems to proper the ship towards Nunes, who herself has misplaced two in a row after reeling off 4 straight victories.
Right here is the UFC Combat Night time struggle ebook with the newest odds from Caesars Sportsbook.
UFC Combat Night time Ebook, Odds
| Marlon Vera -240 | Dominick Cruz +200 | Bantam weight |
| David Onama -300 | Nate Landwehr +240 | Weight as much as |
| Azamat Murzakanov -155 | Devin Clark +130 | Gentle weight |
| Cynthia Calvillo -170 | Nina Nunes +145 | Fly weight for girls |
| Bruno Silva -310 | Gerald Meerschaert +250 | Medium weight |
| Yazmin Jauregui -210 | Yasmin Lucindo +175 | Straw weight for girls |
UFC Combat Night time viewing info
Date: August 13 | Begin time: 7 p.m. ET
Location: Pechanga Enviornment — San Diego, California
TV Channel: ESPN | Present: fuboTV (strive free)
foresight
Marlon Vera vs. Dominick Cruz: Vera offers with violence on a regular basis. That is evident following a five-round knockout of Rob Font and a third-round knockout of Frankie Edgar. Cruz’s distinctive elusiveness has remained viable 16 years after his skilled debut. He might not be as robust as he as soon as was, however the veteran can nonetheless outscore vital opposition. Their types are mirrored of their professional information. Vera leads with a 56% end fee to Cruz’s 23% in 27 fights every. An growing old Frankie Edgar took an early lead towards “Chito” earlier than Vera turned the tide late within the 2nd spherical. Font had probably the most profitable run within the first. A five-round struggle advantages Vera. His energy lags, and 25 minutes offers him loads of time to select up on Cruz’s troubling patterns. Cruz deserves some severe applause for combating again from so many accidents and nonetheless competing at a decent degree. It may positively hassle Vera for a lot of the 5 rounds. The problem can be to hit Vera with sufficient drive to discourage the Ecuadorian fighter from advancing. The wins over Munhoz and Kenney have been spectacular, however aggressive sufficient to make one marvel how far he can go this final spherical. Vera by TKO4
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