‘Nice guy, but a damn heavy bag’

A promising UFC bantamweight fighter has a clear opinion about the skills of his division’s latest title contender.

Marlon Vera unsuccessfully attempted the gold medal fight in the 135-pound class at UFC 299 last March. He built on his previous victory over champion Sean O’Malley and, thanks to a 1-1 record, was able to earn himself a revenge in 2023.

While the Ecuadorian promised to repeat his first-round knockout of “Sugar” in Miami, he was outclassed in five rounds as O’Malley secured his first title defense in dominant fashion.

Vera received criticism from many fans and fellow fighters afterwards, many of whom doubted whether he could compete with the best.

According to this outlook, he can’t even get along with the newcomers…

Loughran not impressed with Vera’s skills: ‘I’m 1-1 in the UFC and think I would beat him’

During a recent interview with InsideFighting, UFC bantamweight Caolan Loughran gave his thoughts on some of the potential fighters, stars and champions working for the sport’s premier promotion.

When Vera’s name was mentioned, the Irishman said he saw nothing but a “terrible” fighter.

He did have some positive things to say about the Ecuadorian as a person. But when it comes to cage action, Loughran believes that even he, just two fights into his UFC career, can make a fight against Vera look easy.

“Shit fighter. Horrible fighter. I’ll be honest,” Loughran said. “He got the UFC title, but that was purely because of the first O’Malley. Don’t judge him on any aspect.

“Fair play to him and what he does for his daughter. It’s a beautiful story. Nice guy. I just think he’s a f*cking tough fighter,” Loughran continued. “I’m 1-1 in the UFC and I think I’d beat ‘Chito,’ who just fought for a title. Put him on his back and he’s like a fish out of water. … I think he’s a shit fighter.”

The next person Vera will be looking to ‘overwhelm’ is Deiveson Figueiredo, who will share the cage with ‘Chito’ at the upcoming UFC Fight Night event in Abu Dhabi early next month.

Should he suffer a series of defeats at the hands of “Deus Da Guerra” in 2024, Vera’s hopes of a second chance at the title will take a major hit.