Jose Aldo put it all together to get his first win at bantamweight at UFC Vegas 17, defeating Marlon Vera by unanimous decision.
Jose Aldo looked to halt the rise of Marlon Vera at UFC Vegas 17. Aldo is one of the best fighters of all time and has been looking to make some noise at bantamweight before his time is up. Coming into the fight, he was 0-2 at 135 with a controversial loss to Marlon Moraes and a title shot loss against Petr Yan. Vera, on the other hand, had won six of his last seven, with the one loss being a controversial decision against Song Yadong.
Vera started the fight with a few front kicks and Aldo began firing out his jab. Nothing much was landing on either side early on save for some leg kicks for Aldo, so Vera clinched up with the former champion and held him against the cage for a while until Aldo spun him around and pushed away. Aldo ripped to the body twice with a beautiful left hook. He then jabbed up high before unloading a right straight to the body. Leg kicks started coming in from Aldo, reminding everyone of the technique he’s perhaps most associated with. Vera began firing back with kicks of his own and the round came to an end.
💢 Blistering pace through 5! #UFCVegas17 pic.twitter.com/Bi92z3qdb0
— UFC (@ufc) December 20, 2020
Both fighters were trading leg kicks to start the second round and Aldo began mixing in the jab. A left hook caught Vera from a lunging Aldo. Vera stuck him with a leg kick and Aldo came back with a straight and an uppercut. The body shots started coming in for Aldo and Vera clinched with him against the cage. Vera nearly got Aldo down with a trip, but the former champion stayed on his feet, landing a pair of knees. A counter left hook landed for Vera followed by another clinch. Vera kept the pressure on Aldo to close out the round with knees in the clinch.
Vera rushed out to start the final round and Aldo got a hold of him, taking his back on the feet. He then jumped up to backpack Vera, and while Vera was trying to buck him off, Vera slipped and Aldo had his back on the ground. He locked in a body triangle and Vera wasn’t able to shake him. Vera got to his feet, but Aldo was still hanging onto his back. Aldo had him locked in for nearly the entirety of the third round as the fight came to an end, frustrating Vera.
After the fight, Aldo called out TJ Dillashaw.
Jose Aldo def. Marlon Vera by Unanimous Decision (29-28 x3)
