Marlon Vera Ends Losing Streak With Third-Round TKO of Charles Jourdain at UFC 331

Fighting at Crypto.com Arena, Vera stopped Jourdain in the third round to snap a four-fight skid dating back to early 2024.

Marlon Vera earned a third-round TKO victory over Charles Jourdain at UFC 331, closing out the preliminary card at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The win improved Vera's record to 24-12-1 in MMA and 16-11 inside the UFC, while Jourdain fell to 18-9-1 overall and 9-8-1 in the promotion.

The stoppage carried extra weight for Vera, who arrived on a four-fight losing run and had dropped five of his previous six bouts, each by decision. That slide began with a title-fight defeat to then-bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley at UFC 299 in March 2024. The victory over Jourdain was Vera's first in more than three years.

Speaking to reporters afterward, Vera described the losing stretch as feeling like a nightmare he could not escape, noting that walls seemed to be collapsing around him after further defeats against Zahabi and in Mexico City. He said doubts were pressing on him in the locker room before the fight, but he reminded himself that he needed to provide for his family and keep his job.

Vera added that he entered the bout determined to test a fresh approach regardless of the result, and that the changes paid off mentally. He said he felt more creative, more present in the moment, and that he viewed the fight as one his livelihood depended on.