Midnight Mania! Chito Robbed While In Miami For UFC 299

Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight!

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

It’s been a crappy week for Marlon Vera.

Vera came up short in the main event of UFC 299 on Saturday (March 9, 2024) from Miami, Florida. Not only did he leave the cage without the title, but champion Sean O’Malley mostly used his face as a speed bag (watch highlights), landing dozens and dozens of nasty shots in a master class performance. It was a rough night at the office, to say the least, but Vera’s misfortunes don’t end there.

On Instagram, “Chito” posted a picture of a busted front door, revealing his home had been burglarized while he was away fighting in Miami. Vera wrote, “The f—king a—hole that broke into my home, I’m gonna find you.”

“The context is last night there was a robbery,” Vera also wrote online (via LowKickMMA). “They broke into our house. Though they are material things, they are things that have been bought with a lot of effort and hard work. But hey, these types of things happen and the truth is tonight will be a good one.”

Unfortunately, Vera is not the first fighter to have his home broken into while away on business. Last year, former UFC interim Heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane was robbed while fighting in Paris, losing an estimated six-figures in the break-in. Robberies like this have become an issue for athletes beyond MMA as well — part of the danger of having one’s location known far and wide months ahead of time.

After the loss at UFC 299, Vera faces a long road ahead to return to the title picture. He’s now lost two of his last three, and both five-round defeats saw “Chito” struggle to win a round. Nevertheless, he’s vowed to return for the belt.

Insomnia

I have a difficult time understanding why Cedric Doumbe should have a loss on his record because someone wore boots into the cage.

Am I crazy in think Michael Page is a bad match up for Ian Garry? I could also see it playing out like Darren Till vs. Stephen Thompson (boring).

A Lightweight showdown of jiu-jitsu black belts:

Tim Elliott has been around the Flyweight block!

Daniel Lacerda’s historic 0-5 (1) UFC run will not be forgotten.

Two of Dustin Poirier’s rivals were thrilled to see him victorious at UFC 299 — pretty cool!

A throwback boxing match between current boxing greats:

Slips, rips, and KO clips

As mentioned, the finish is indeed very cool, but the transition from initial takedown exchange into triangle choke made me rewind three times to understand what happened.

Quick lead leg high kick sneaks right over the hands:

Circled him right into the elbow — nasty!

Random Land

The engine appears ready to explode.

Midnight Music: Alternative, 1989

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.