UFC 331: Marlon Vera vs Charles Jourdain Preview & Prediction

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Marlon Vera looks to snap a four fight losing streak against surging former featherweight, Charles Jourdain, at 135 pounds.

Marlon Vera vs Charles Jourdain facts

What time are Marlon Vera and Charles Jourdain expected to walk out? 20 September 2026 at 1:10 am

Where is UFC 331: Van vs Pantoja 2? Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, USA

Where can I get tickets for UFC 331: Van vs Pantoja 2? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC 331

What TV channel is UFC 331: Van vs Pantoja 2 on? UK – TNT Sports / USA – Paramount

Where can I stream UFC 331: Van vs Pantoja 2? UK – TNT Sports can stream the event online via the TNT Sports website and HBO Max / USA – Paramount+ & UFC Fight Pass

UFC 331: Van vs Pantoja 2 main card

Joshua Van vs Alexandre Pantoja (Flyweight)

Arman Tsarukyan vs Mauricio Ruffy (Lightweight)

Patricio Pitbull vs Choi Doo-ho (Featherweight)

Renato Moicano vs Brian Ortega (Lightweight)

Alonzo Menifield vs Iwo Baraniewski (Light Heavyweight)

UFC 331: Van vs Pantoja 2 prelims

Gable Steveson vs Sean Sharaf (Heavyweight)

Marlon Vera vs Charles Jourdain (Bantamweight)

Tai Tuivasa vs Robelis Despaigne (Heavyweight)

Edmen Shahbazyan vs Brunno Ferreira (Middleweight)

Giga Chikadze vs Joanderson Brito (Featherweight)

Casey O'Neill vs Eduarda Moura (Women's Flyweight)

Ryan Gandra vs Osman Diaz (Middleweight)

Michael Aswell Jr. vs Yoo Joo-sang (Featherweight)

Marlon Vera: Does "Chito" have enough left in the tank to turn back another prospect?

Former title challenger, Marlon Vera (23-12-1) enters this matchup riding a four fight losing streak. A powerful striker with nasty jiu jitsu, Vera is renowned for his iron chin and superhuman toughness; he’s never been finished in nearly forty professional MMA bouts. Sharing the cage with the likes of Sean O’Malley, Cory Sandhagen, and Jose Aldo to name but a few, Vera has fought a who’s-who of competition at 135 pounds en route to a 15-11 UFC record, but he’s been dropping results to less credentialed names as of late.

Charles Jourdain: "Air" aims to continue his perfect run in his new weight class

3-0 in his new weight class since dropping down from featherweight, Charles Jourdain (18-8-1) looks for the biggest scalp of his bantamweight tenure come Saturday night. A UFC competitor since 2019, “Air” went 6-7-1 at featherweight, with a KO loss to Jean Silva eventually prompting the move in weight. Known for his all-action style and high volume, Jourdain has an excellent kicking game and is also renowned for his brutal guillotines. He’s beaten Victor Henry, Davey Grant, and Kyler Phillips since moving to 135 pounds, with all but his most recent victory over Phillips coming by way of the aforementioned submission.

Marlon Vera vs Charles Jourdain prediction

While he may be riding a four fight losing streak, Vera has the style, toughness, and finishing ability to score the upset here. If he can drag Jourdain into deep waters, he could conceivably find an opportunistic stoppage if the Canadian starts to flag.

However, we’re still going with Jourdain here. I don’t envision him scoring the finish; Vera has never been stopped and still has one of the best chins in MMA history. However, “Air” has always been a volume fighter and Vera has been getting consistently outlanded on the feet in recent appearances. While it wouldn’t come as a shock to see him get wobbled by a counter at some point, I see the Canadian coming out fast and building an early lead against “Chito.”

Ultimately, I expect this to play out like most of Vera’s fights that don’t end in a finish; namely, with the Ecuadorian failing to show any urgency in the first two rounds and falling behind on the scorecards, duly rallying to win the final frame, and then looking completely outraged when he loses 29-28 on the scorecards. The pick is "Air" Jourdain by decision.

Prediction: Charles Jourdain to win by decision