Vera promises long, painful night for Parry in ONE FC title fight

MANILA, Philippines – Trash-talking and taunting are a staple of combat sports, but there are boundaries for Filipino-American fighter Brandon Vera, who is scheduled to step inside the ONE Championship cage against Chi Lewis Parry for the promotion’s inaugural heavyweight title on December 11.

Both heavyweights have engaged in a verbal battle since Vera received numerous callouts from Parry, the British behemoth who accused the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) superstar of avoiding a fight with him.

As it turned out, it ticked off and ignited a different kind of fire in Vera. The 38-year-old native San Diego, California promises that it will be a long night of punishment for Parry.

“I want him to be hurt. I don’t want it to be over fast. With all of the stuff that he is saying, I don’t want it over in the first round and I don’t want it over in the second. I really want to make him wonder what on earth he has entered into,” Vera said.

In addition, the 6-foot-2 Vera downplayed the length and size advantage of Parry with his speed, asserting that he has trained and fought taller competitors than him all throughout his 13-year prizefighting career before lauding his pace as a heavyweight.

Parry stands 6-foot-9 and has a reach of 86 inches, which gives Vera a disadvantage in height by 7 inches and in length from fist to armpit by 9 inches.

“I fought and trained with taller guys. I don’t mind his height and length. Plus, he is slow. I am much faster than him. Speed is the key,” said Vera, who danced with bigger opponents such as Fabricio Werdum, Tim Sylvia, Frank Mir and Jon Jones inside UFC’s Octagon.

Vera revealed that fighting in the Philippines gives him the drive to come out on top of his 5-round championship clash versus Parry.

“I love fighting here in the Philippines. I am glad that ONE has brought me here again, especially for the heavyweight championship of the world. If I could fight here all the time, why not. I love fighting here,” he expressed.

The much-awaited meeting between Vera and Parry is the headliner of ONE: Spirit of Champions, which takes place at the 20,000-seater SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. – Rappler.com