Indian fighter ends Vera’s reign as ONE beltholder

MANILA, Philippines — The once mighty Brandon Vera has fallen.

Vera, 43, was dealt a second-round technical knockout loss by Indian Arjan Bhullar to cede the ONE heavyweight title he snatched by knocking out Paul Cheng in the first round of their showdown in Pasay six years ago.

The Fil-Am power striker was nowhere near the form he showed during his long reign.

Possibly, it was due to inactivity since his last fight happened two years ago when he lost to former light heavy and middleweight king Aung Ka Nsang via another TKO (punches) in the second round of their non-title duel.

It was Vera’s ninth defeat against 16 wins while Bhullar, 35, extended his win streak to four and leapfrogged to 11-1 (win-loss) while becoming the first Indian titleholder in the fight outfit.

Meanwhile, Charles Oliveira claimed the UFC lightweight title Saturday night, stopping Michael Chandler with a barrage of punches early in the second round at UFC 262 in Houston, Texas.

Oliveira (31-8) earned his ninth consecutive victory in dramatic fashion, finishing Chandler (22-6) with a series of precise strikes to claim the belt vacated by Khabib Nurmagomedov’s retirement.