Marlon Vera, Deiveson Figueiredo Agree to Meeting at UFC Abu Dhabi on Aug. 3

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is stacking the deck for its return to Abu Dhabi this summer.

Per Ag. Fight on Thursday, Marlon Vera (23-9-1) and Deiveson Figueiredo (23-3-1) have agreed to a bantamweight clash at UFC on ABC 7. The report noted that the fighters have not officially signed their contracts, but verbal agreements are in place. Should this matchup indeed come together, it will be held at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Aug. 3. The pairing has since been confirmed by Vera on his Instagram Stories as well as other outlets. This joins other 135-pound contest Cory Sandhagen vs. Umar Nurmagomedov as the only fights currently booked for the card.

In his last time out, Vera fell short vying for the bantamweight throne against Sean O'Malley. Atop UFC 299, the striker was outstruck by the champ, handing “Chito” his second loss in three outings. Vera earned a crack at gold off a single victory when he overcame Pedro Munhoz via decision in 2023. Additionally, the Ecuadorian had history with O’Malley, as he had beaten “Sugar Sean” in 2020 with leg kicks and follow-up ground-and-pound.

Former flyweight kingpin Figueiredo moved up in weight in late 2023 and has not looked back. Shortly before his 36th birthday, Figueiredo handled Rob Font to introduce himself to the 135-pound category. He returned to the cage a little over five months later to open UFC 300 and tapped Cody Garbrandt with a rear-naked choke to stamp himself a contender at this new weight. The two-time 125-pound beltholder first picked it up in 2020 when he put Joseph Benavidez to sleep with a choke, and he won it back against Brandon Moreno two years later in the midst of their tetralogy title tilts.