Marvin Vettori: 'They're going to tell me I'm a hater,' but Israel Adesanya will lose 'any fight'

Marvin Vettori thinks Israel Adesanya’s time at the top is over.

Adesanya (24-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) lost his middleweight title to Sean Strickland this past September at UFC 293, and announced that he’ll be taking a hiatus.

But it appears Adesanya’s break won’t be for too long. “The Stylebender” is projected to be UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis’ first title defense, but Vettori doesn’t see him winning that fight – or any fight against the upper echelon of the division.

“Izzy will lose any fight,” Vettori told The Schmo. “If he comes back, he’s not going to win any fight. I will tell you this. In the top three or four, he’s not going to win any fight. I don’t think he’s going to beat Khamzat (Chimaev) either. He’s going to get taken down, I think.

“If he comes back, he’s just going to lose I think. They’re going to tell me I’m a hater and sh*t, but it’s true. This game is evolving so fast. The grappling level is just evolving, getting higher and higher, and I think he can’t hang. Taking a year off now, it’s a lot.”

Vettori (19-6-1 MMA, 9-5-1 UFC) has lost to Adesanya twice before, once for the middleweight title at UFC 263. When asked if he’d be open to a trilogy, Vettori said definitely.

“For sure,” Vettori said. “I ain’t gonna go anywhere. I’ll be around, and I’ll get that shot before later.”

Vettori takes on streaking contender Brendan Allen (23-5 MMA, 11-2 UFC) in a UFC Fight Night main event on April 6 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.