Vera ends four-fight skid with third-round stoppage of Jourdain at UFC 331

Marlon Vera ended a three-year drought with an emotional third-round stoppage of Charles Jourdain at UFC 331, held at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday. The Ecuadorian bantamweight, who had not won since a decision over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292 in August 2023, closed out the preliminary card by forcing Jourdain to signal he could not continue at 2:02 of Round 3.

Vera entered the night in a precarious position. The one-time bantamweight title challenger had dropped four consecutive fights — the worst skid of his professional career — and faced genuine uncertainty about his future in the promotion had he fallen short again.

From the opening bell, Vera looked like a different fighter. He was the aggressor throughout, repeatedly beating Jourdain to the punch and battering the Canadian contender with strikes across the first two rounds. Jourdain, who came in targeting a fourth straight victory, struggled to find answers to Vera’s relentless pressure.

The finish arrived in the final frame. Vera turned up the intensity, knocking Jourdain down before the Canadian gestured to referee Mike Beltran that he was unable to continue, bringing an official end to the contest.

The victory improves Vera’s professional record to 24-12-1. Speaking afterwards, an emotional Vera described how desperately he had needed the result and credited a change in training camps as a key factor in his improved performance.