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Former ONE heavyweight champ Brandon Vera is looking to make a statement at ONE 164 against Iranian powerhouse Amir Aliakbari. 'The Truth' wants to score a finish in front of his adopted Filipino fans.
The 45-year-old MMA veteran is making his first appearance of 2022 in what could possibly be his final fight. Back-to-back losses to Aung La N Sang and Arjan Bhullar has Vera yearning for one more victory.
Vera's entering the bout extremely motivated due to a specific reason, which he revealed to CNN Sports Desk:
"I said yes before I even knew who we were signing, to scrap it against on the 3rd, and that was already a motivation because they have a date in the Philippines, then I got to find out that it was against Aliakbari. That's even more motivation to finish this fight."
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Aliakbari enters the upcoming bout having lost two of his first three ONE contests, including a first-round TKO loss to current interim heavyweight champ Anatoly Malykhin. However, he won his most recent outing at ONE on Prime Video 1.
Check out Brandon Vera's full interview with CNN Sports Desk below:
Brandon Vera loves Amir Aliakbari's fighting style
'The Truth' thoroughly enjoys the way his upcoming opponent competes inside the circle. Much has to do with his kill-or-be-killed style, which has been on display in each of his first three ONE appearances. Vera said in the same interview:
"Amir Aliakbari comes to bang. He's obviously a world championship wrestler, having won the world championship in wrestling, but he's also a dangerous KO striker, a heavyweight KO fighter. This is something every Filipino is going to love."
Brandon Vera will have the chance to awe his home fans. With a win, the veteran could be convinced to continue fighting. Who could forget Vera putting the world on notice with four straight first-round stoppages upon entering ONE?
Make sure to watch Brandon Vera take on Amir Aliakbari at ONE 164 on December 3 in what could be his final fight, live from the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines.
