It was a rough day at the office for Marvin Vettori.
Vettori hoped to not only become the first Italian champion in the UFC, but also exact revenge on Israel Adesanya in their middleweight title fight at UFC 263 last night.
Neither of those things happened as Adesanya put on a clinic to comfortably outpoint Vettori. Vettori still thought he won as he raised his arm when Bruce Buffer was reading the decision which led to Adesanya repeatedly clowning him.
Vettori revealed what the pair said to each other afterward while adding that there is definitely respect between the pair now despite the heated buildup.
“Right after the fight, I thought I won,” Vettori told BT Sport. “He’s like, ‘No, you didn’t win.’ But at the end of the day, it’s respect. We don’t like each other, but it’s respect.
“We’ve shared the Octagon for eight rounds now, for 40 minutes basically. At the end of the day, you’ve got to give some props.”
Vettori Still Thinks 50-45 Was Wrong Decision
All three judges scored the contest in favor of Adesanya which made Vettori thinking he won look even sillier.
However, he still believes it was the wrong decision even if he felt he didn’t do enough.
“I think 50-45 was definitely not the right decision, but it is what it is,” Vettori explained. “At the end of the day, I’m 27 years old. I’m going to go back to the hotel. I’m going to go and run. I’m going to do like a five-mile run. I didn’t even take a hot shower because I feel like I don’t deserve it. That’s how crazy I am. I’m going to go back and work and get ready for the next fight, you know?
“I had all the cards to beat him, but I didn’t. I said coming in I wouldn’t have left doubts, and even if I won, I would’ve left doubts. At the end of the day, I didn’t do enough.”
While the loss is still fresh, Vettori has an idea of who he wants to face next.
“I mean if he can show up, eventually,” Vettori said of potentially fighting Darren Till next. “But to be honest, I would like to really destroy this drunk guy [Paulo Costa] who can’t even stay off drinking. It’s ‘Borrachinha.’”
You can watch the full interview below:
