David Martinez continued his winning ways with a unanimous decision victory over Marlon “Chito” Vera in the UFC Mexico co-main event.
Recognizing the kind of fight-ending power his opponent possessed, Martinez was fast on his feet and quick with his hands as he constantly popped Vera with combinations and then got away before he could face much reprieve. Even late in the fight when Vera was gunning for a finish, Martinez smartly stayed out of trouble and maintained his composure until time ran out.
When it was over, all three judges had the fight 29-28 for Martinez as he got the decision win.
“He’s a really hard fighter,” Martinez said about Vera after the win. “He hits really hard. I’m here to represent and I’m really happy. This is the biggest mixed martial arts organization in the world … whoever they give me, I’m going to be ready.”
The fast hands from Martinez were on display early and often as he popped Vera with several stinging shots with the former bantamweight title challenger constantly marching forward. When Martinez attacked, he was accurate and powerful and then circling away before Vera could really have much of a chance to counter him.
Martinez also caught a kick and put Vera on the canvas where he unloaded some nasty ground strikes before the first round came to a close.
As time passed, Martinez was darting in and out with so much speed, popping Vera with two or three punches and then moving away again. Martinez was also digging to the body and then going back up top to the head where he snapped Vera’s head back with several shots.
Vera did manage another head kick and this one landed with a bit more impact but Martinez just walked through it before scoring another takedown. This time, Vera managed to slip free to get back to his feet but he wasn’t able to capitalize before the round ended.
With five minutes remaining, Vera’s coach Jason Parillo implored his fighter to hit the gas and go for broke because there was little chance he would win a decision. That led to Vera trying to close the distance with Martinez still displaying great movement before throwing quick two and three punch combinations in succession.
While Martinez was definitely slower in the third round, Vera just wasn’t able to do any real damage and he was still eating a few punches for his trouble. Vera was still pressing forward looking for the knockout and also digging to the body with some stiff strikes.
Just before time expired, Vera opened up with a barrage of shots that appeared to hurt Martinez but was he was still ultra-elusive, firing back and moving away until the fight came to a close.
Now 3-0 in the UFC, Martinez looks like a contender worth watching and he’ll undoubtedly look for an even higher ranked opponent in his next outing while Vera suffers his third straight losses marking the longest losing streak of his career.
