Video: What’s at stake between Dominick Cruz and Marlon Vera at UFC on ESPN 41?

A former champion returns Saturday in front of his home fans.

Ex-UFC bantamweight titleholder Dominick Cruz (24-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) takes on Marlon Vera (21-7-1 MMA, 13-6 UFC) in the UFC on ESPN 41 main event, and he’ll do it in front of a friendly crowd where he trains in San Diego.

Cruz went 2-0 in 2021. But just getting two fights in was something of an accomplishment for him. It was the first time since 2016 that he had multiple fights in a calendar year. Thanks to injuries, he didn’t fight at all from the time he lost the bantamweight title to Cody Garbrandt in December 2016 until he tried to recapture it against Henry Cejudo in May 2020.

With a third straight win, Cruz could make a solid claim to be back in the title picture, especially if he’s finally over the injury hump. He’s had just nine fights in about 11 1/2 years in the UFC.

Against Vera, he meets a surging opponent whose resume includes wins over Sean O’Malley, Rob Font inApril, and former lightweight champ Frankie Edgar. He has three straight wins, all of which have netted him post-fight bonus awards.

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So what’s really at stake in the headliner between a former champ and someone who wants his first title fight? That’s what we asked our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Mike Bohn, Nolan King and Brian “Goze,” along with host “Gorgeous” George Garcia.

Check out their reaction in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s full episode below.

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Tuesday on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel. You can watch the full episode in the video below.

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UFC on ESPN 41 breakdown: Can Marlon Vera put away ex-champ Dominick Cruz?

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie