Marlon “Chito” Vera defeated Pedro Munhoz in the first fight on the UFC 292 main card via unanimous decision (30-27×2, 29-28). The win has likely pushed Vera just one victory away from a title shot at 135 pounds.
The scrap was a close one with both men having their own moments. In fact, I scored the fight 29-28 for Munhoz. There were quite a few members of the media who scored the fight for Munhoz.
Despite the odd scorecards, this wasn’t a crazy result considering the first two rounds could’ve gone either way.
The third round was definitively in favor of Vera who landed the more telling shots including a body-head combination that caused the strongest reaction. Vera’s record improved to 21-8-1 and 15-7 in the UFC. Munhoz fell to 20-8 and 10-8 in the UFC.
Coming into the fight, Vera was ranked No. 6 by the promotion and Munhoz was 10th. There is a chance he could move ahead of the idle Petr Yan with the win. In any case, Vera should get a matchup with an opponent ranked in the top 5 in his next fight.
There are some exciting possibilities for Vera with Aljamain Sterling, Sean O’Malley, Corey Sandhagen, Merab Dvalishvili, Henry Cejudo or Yan should all be on the table for Chito.
While Munhoz’s loss was respectable, he is 36years old and quite possibly toward the end of his prime. Is Munhoz still dangerous and a very tough out for any bantamweight? Yes, but he may well be descending toward gatekeeper status.
Munhoz needs a big win in his next fight to remain ranked and a legitimate contender in the UFC men’s bantamweight division.
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