"He wasn't more skilled, he didn't have more cardio" - Marvin Vettori on his title fight loss to Israel Adesanya at UFC 263

Marvin Vettori, in the wake of his loss against Israel Adesanya, has moved on to prepping for a fight against a former contender Paulo Costa. Although he was thoroughly outboxed by the middleweight champion, he still refuses to admit that Adesanya was better in terms of combat. However, he did admit that he had greater vision and planning.

While in conversation with John Morgan of MMA Junkie, Marvin Vettori offered fans some insight into his attempt at bagging the title. He asserted that although Israel Adesanya fought a smart fight and maintained a safe distance, he wasn't necessarily the better fighter:

"You know I just felt like he was very smart in there. With that being said, he wasn't better. He wasn't like more skilled. He didn't have more cardio. He knew he was a champion and he didn't really want to engage with me in a lot of exchanges in general," declared Marvin Vettori.

Catch the entire segment with John Morgan and Marvin Vettori right here:

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Marvin Vettori credits Israel Adesanya for greater vision

Israel Adesanya has frequently been hailed for the way he exerts control inside the octagon. Out of his ten fights in the UFC's middleweight division, he has only won one fight by way of split decision, recording decisive KO/TKOs and unanimous decision wins in all other fights:

"One thing he was good at, he was able to play the crowd. He was like his own corner. He was able to see the situation from the outside, from a third eye almost. He used that to his advantage, meanwhile I didn't use it or almost I let it play against me because I had like blinders on," admitted Marvin Vettori.

The Italian cited differences in the atmosphere with fans back in attendance and the way Adesanya used them as well. Marvin Vettori will hope to overcome the challenge presented by Paulo Costa to hold on to the relevance that he has garnered in the UFC's middleweight division.