Marlon Vera believes win over Dominick Cruz earned him a shot at the Bantamweight title next

“Chito” firmly sees himself fighting for the gold next year if things go as planned.

In August, Marlon Vera scored the biggest win of his career, knocking out Dominick Cruz in the main event of UFC San Diego.

The win was Vera’s fourth in a row and put him on the precipice of a title shot in the stacked 135-pound division — and according to “Chito” it could have been enough to seal the deal.

“Possible — I would love to,” Vera recently said on The MMA Hour. “It could happen after what happens in Abu Dhabi [at UFC 280]. It really comes down to performance. Show me what you can do. I gave you what you want. Winning is great, winning is the most important thing — it’s not the only thing. It’s the most important thing, f*** the rest, but winning like that is what [makes] you go [up], and you just keep going to the other place, just keep climbing ahead. That’s what they want. They want some clean s***. They want to be like, ‘Oh, f***! They love it!’”

Whatever may come next, Vera is in an excellent position. Only 29 and already one of the top bantamweights in the world, “Chito” says that it is simply a matter of time until he hoists UFC gold.

“I think we’re going to a good direction,” Vera said. “I’m going to be a world champion. When? I don’t know. If anybody can see the future, nobody would be stuck in a hole at some point in life. But I’m going to be a world champion. That’s without a doubt. That’s 1,000-percent sure. That’s a fact. When? Who knows? Soon? Maybe. Very soon.”

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