Israel Adesanya reveals the vague origin of his beef with Marvin Vettori

Israel Adesanya has revealed the vague origin of his beef with Marvin Vettori.

Adesanya’s first fight with Vettori took place at UFC on FOX: Poirier vs. Gaethje (April 2018). The matchup witnessed Adesanya defeat 'The Italian Dream' via split decision. The fight was closely contested, and their rivalry has become increasingly intense in the ensuing years.

During an interview with BT Sport, Israel Adesanya was asked about the animosity between him and Marvin Vettori. The interviewer, Adam Catterall, also asked whether it stems back to their first fight in 2018, or whether it built up over a shorter period of time. Israel Adesanya responded by saying:

“I think it was in Vegas after he fought; I was there when Dan (Hooker) fought; I was in Dan’s corner when he fought Diakiese, Marc Diakiese. And I just happened to run into Vettori. I walked past him, we walked past each other and kind of gave each other this look. And I was like, f**k him. And I just told Eugene, my coach, ‘I wanna fight this guy. He kind of smirked at me’. And then, on my second UFC fight, after my debut, they offered us three names, three people – And I was like, ‘That guy; I remember him. That guy; I wanna fight him’. And there were two easier fights as well; two easier fights to pick from. But I picked him because, yeah, I don’t know. It’s energy. Some energies don’t mix. And that’s alright.”

Catterall then asked Israel Adesanya why the former still thinks his interpersonal equation with Marvin Vettori is the same as it was back then. Catterall noted that they’ve already fought, and Adesanya defeated Vettori. 'The Last Stylebender' replied:

“He hasn’t let it go. That’s the problem. He finds it hard to let go of the past. I don’t. I’m not attached to any time in history, to any ideas, to any certain moment. So, I can let things go. Like, okay, that’s in the past. But he wants to hold on to it. But, yeah, this time, in the future, in a few days, he’s going to realize.” (*Video courtesy: BT Sport; H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)

Watch the interview with Israel Adesanya below:

Israel Adesanya revealed that his rivalry with Marvin Vettori started around the time Adesanya’s City Kickboxing gym teammate Dan Hooker fought against Marc Diakiese.

The fight took place back in December 2017, when Adesanya had a rather odd encounter with 'The Italian Dream.' A few months later, in April 2018, Adesanya and Vettori competed against each other inside the octagon.

Israel Adesanya looks to return to the win column after his first professional MMA defeat

Israel Adesanya (left); Marvin Vettori (right)

Israel Adesanya suffered the first loss of his professional MMA career earlier this year. The reigning UFC middleweight champion moved up to challenge Jan Blachowicz for the latter's UFC light heavyweight title. Adesanya faced the Polish fighter in the main event of UFC 259 (March 2021).

Jan Blachowicz defeated 'The Last Stylebender' via unanimous decision and successfully defended his light heavyweight belt. This marked Adesanya's first loss in MMA and the UFC. 'The Last Stylebender' subsequently announced that he'd move back down to middleweight to defend his title.

At UFC 263 on June 12th, 2021, Israel Adesanya puts his UFC middleweight title on the line and will look to return to the win column by beating a familiar foe. 'The Last Stylebender' faces Marvin Vettori in the main event at UFC 263.

Which fighter do you see emerging victorious at UFC 263? Sound off in the comments.