A viral video circulating on social media appears to show UFC bantamweight fighter Marlon "Chito" Vera confronting a knife-wielding man with a shotgun.
The footage, shared by Vera on Instagram on Friday, has sparked debate among fans, with many questioning its authenticity.
In the video, Vera is seen checking under the hood of his red pickup truck when a hooded individual approaches.
The man then pulls out a long blade, prompting Vera to calmly walk toward the driver’s side of his vehicle.
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He then retrieves a pump-action shotgun through the open window, cocks it, and aims it directly at the approaching man. The suspect immediately drops the knife and flees.
The clip, which appears to be captured by a home security camera, quickly gained traction online.
Professional UFC fighter, Chito Vera, was working on his truck as a man with what appears to be a knife tried approaching him.
Chito immediately recognizes the danger and pulls out a shotgun from his car to deter the threat pic.twitter.com/uu6B4lBFph — Dudes Posting Their W’s (@DudespostingWs) March 7, 2025
However, many viewers remain skeptical about whether the incident was real or staged.
UFC fighter, Chito Vera, 100% staged this.
(This reminds me of the Sean Strickland video where he draws his gun as he walks into a surprise birthday party.) So let me get this straight. A stick up kid ARMED WITH A KNIFE approaches you IN BROAD DAYLIGHT in a fucking suburb… pic.twitter.com/tGi1Jj3lNT — Amiri King (@AmiriKing) March 8, 2025
"This is so fake," one user commented on social media.
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Others shared similar sentiments, with one stating, "Staged," and another adding, "He didn’t shoot because it’s fake."
Nobody armed with a knife is looking at Chito Vera and saying “yeah, that’s my target”. Lmao. Fake shit. https://t.co/5X4vAJl1ZD
— Shinobi 🥷🏼 (@shinobi_01) March 7, 2025
On X, one MMA fan conducted a poll asking users if they believed the video was authentic.
Out of over 1,100 votes, nearly two-thirds believed it was staged.
Vera, a 32-year-old Ecuadorian fighter, has been competing in the UFC since November 2014.
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He last fought in August 2024, when he lost by unanimous decision to Deiveson Figueiredo. Earlier that year, he faced former bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley in March, where he suffered another defeat.
Vera is currently ranked No. 7 in the division with a professional record of 23 wins, 10 losses, and one no-contest in 34 fights.
The UFC fighter has not commented on whether the video was a real-life encounter or a staged scenario.
Regardless of its authenticity, the footage has gained widespread attention, drawing reactions from both fans and critics.
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Fake, door cameras don’t switch view directions.
Lousy UFC fighter who needs street cred, stages attempted robbery.
Who goes outside their home and puts a shotgun in the front seat of their car? I do that all the time. Oil change, tune up, air filter replacement always bring a shotgun.
Apparently UFC fighting is so popular the fighters now have to act like rappers to get attention!
These morons and all this moronic fight crap needs to go the way of the Doo Doo bird! That s hit is dumb dumb!