'I wanna finish him' - Israel Adesanya aims to put an emphatic end to his rivalry with Marvin Vettori

Israel Adesanya has revealed that he aims to put an emphatic end to his rivalry with Marvin Vettori. In an interview with BT Sport, Adam Catterall asked Israel Adesanya what the latter wants to do in his upcoming rematch to end the rivalry and move on from it. Note that 'The Last Stylebender' has already beaten the Italian before. In response to Catterall's question, Adesanya said:

“Finish him. I want to finish the job, part two. And by finish the job, I want to be, like; one thing I would say – He’s tough. But everyone has a breaking point. I want to finish him, yeah. I want to take him out and finish the jobber.”

The first fight between Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori was a back-and-forth contest that 'The Last Stylebender' won via split decision. Their fight was a three-round middleweight bout that transpired at UFC on FOX: Poirier vs. Gaethje on April 14th, 2018.

Adesanya and Vettori are now set to fight in a five-round middleweight bout, with the UFC middleweight title on the line, at UFC 263 on June 12th, 2021.

Adam Catterall noted that many fight fans have been going back and forth about why Israel Adesanya would give Marvin Vettori a rematch at UFC 263 rather than face Robert Whittaker again.

Catterall pointed out that Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker's schedules didn't match up with each other, which is why the Marvin Vettori rematch came to fruition. However, he asked Adesanya why he specifically chose to face 'The Italian Dream' at UFC 263. Israel Adesanya responded by stating:

“I didn’t pick Marvin. I picked Rob. But Marvin was saying October, Rob was saying September, and I was like, ‘Look, both of you, I’m the champ. I want to fight in June. Who’s going to show up?’. And Marvin showed up. So, yeah, kudos to him for stepping up – Even though he beat a b*m that was number-10, and he was number-6, and somehow he jumped to number-3. Remember, I’ve told you guys on record – I don’t really believe these rankings. F**k these rankings."

"So, yeah, he’s here. And I wasn’t really excited about the fight. But then after seeing the way Kamaru (Usman) dismantled, you know, Jorge (Masvidal) in the rematch, an immediate rematch for Jorge, and shut him down; I was inspired. Like, right, I’m gonna do that to this guy. I’m going to definitely take him out of the picture and let him know, like, you can’t beat me. It’s over.”

Catterall then requested Israel Adesanya to shed light upon what fans can expect from him at UFC 263. Adesanya responded by emphasizing that he would finish Vettori:

“Trust me. I’m gonna finish the Italian job. I’m gonna finish the Italian jobber – because that’s all he is. His last five fights, I think I only know two people on that list. Yeah, he really hasn’t fought the cream (of the crop). Like, okay, look at who he’s fought, and look at who I’ve fought since we last fought."

"Look at the run that I’ve had and the run that he’s had since we last fought. And then tell me in your heart, he’s gotten better or I’ve gotten better. Who’s improved more? Tell me. Understand, this time it’s not going to be; it’s not going to be one of these fights where it’s like, ‘Oh, it goes to the judges’. Like, nah. This fight, I’m taking him out. I’m finishing the job, (part) two.” (*Video courtesy: BT Sport; H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)

Israel Adesanya cited the example of his close friend Kamaru Usman's pair of fights against the latter's longtime rival Jorge Masvidal. Usman defeated Masvidal via unanimous decision at UFC 251 in July 2020.

He later chose to give Masvidal a rematch, despite the latter not having competed since UFC 251. Usman dominantly won the rematch at UFC 261 in April 2021, beating Masvidal via second-round KO. Israel Adesanya pointed out that he plans to beat Vettori in dominant fashion as well.

Israel Adesanya is the final roadblock in Marvin Vettori’s path to making UFC history

Marvin 'The Italian Dream' Vettori

Israel Adesanya is currently the final obstacle in 27-year-old Marvin Vettori’s path to MMA greatness. Vettori looks to etch his name in the UFC history books by becoming the first Italian UFC world champion.

The consensus in the combat sports world is that Israel Adesanya is the more skilled striker of the duo, whereas Marvin Vettori is the more skilled grappler. Both fighters have time and again been praised for their ever-evolving overall MMA skill-sets. Considering that, the Israel Adesanya vs. Marvin Vettori UFC 263 fight is being hailed as one of the most intriguing matchups of 2021.