Former flyweight champion [autotag]Deiveson Figueiredo[/autotag] wants a chance at bantamweight gold after defeating Marlon Vera in the UFC on ABC 7.
On the main card of UFC on ABC 7, at the Etihad Arena, in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, Figueiredo (24-3-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC) proved to be a better fighter than Vera (23-10-1 MMA, 15-9 UFC) on the night, winning by unanimous decision with scores of 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27.
Figueiredo started off by landing some solid strikes in the early exchanges before shooting for a well-timed takedown. Vera did well to keep Figueiredo tied to the ground, only receiving a few elbows on the ground before getting up. Vera tried a running knee, but Figueiredo caught it to take him down and end the round on top.
At the beginning of the second round, Figueiredo chose his punches and kicks well, keeping Vera guessing with threats of a takedown. As the round progressed, Vera increased the forward pressure and landed some strong leg kicks, creating a close frame.
Figueiredo immediately went looking for a takedown in the third round, but was denied. Figueiredo’s repeated punches to the body created a large opening for him to take down Vera with a clean upward strike. Vera got up quickly, but Figueiredo’s clean knockout was the biggest moment of the fight.
During the post-fight interview, Figueiredo called out the winner of the bantamweight title fight between champion Sean O’Malley and challenger Merab Dvalishvili, which takes place at Noche UFC, at Sphere, in Las Vegas, on September 14th.
Figueiredo continues to be successful at bantamweight. After moving up from flyweight after losing his fourth title fight against Brandon Moreno, Figueiredo has won three straight in the 135-pound division.
Vera, who had his first fight since his title fight loss to O’Malley, has now lost two in a row. His last win was a unanimous decision victory over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292 last August.
Up-to-date UFC on ABC 7 results include:
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Deiveson Figueiredo won. Marlon Vera by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
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Michael Chiesa defeated. Tony Ferguson via submission (rear naked choke) – Round 1, 3:44
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Mackenzie Dern defeated. Loopy Godinez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
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Joel Álvarez defeated. Elves Brener by TKO (knees) – Round 3, 3:36
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Azamat Murzakanov defeated. Alonzo Menifield by KO (punches) – Round 2, 3:18
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Kauê Fernandes defeated. Mohammad Yahya by TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:45
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Shamil Gaziev defeated. Don’Tale Mayes via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
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Guram Kutateladze defeated. Jordan Vucenic by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
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Sam Hughes defeated. Viktoriia Dudakova via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
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Jai Herbert defeated. Rolando Bedoya via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
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Sedriques Dumas defeated. Denis Tiuliulin by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
For more information on the card, visit the MMA Junkie events hub to UFC on ABC 7.
This article was originally published on MMA Junkie: UFC on ABC 7 results: Deiveson Figueiredo beats Marlon Vera and asks for bantamweight belt fight
