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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Mike Bohn

Marvin Vettori issues statement on gutsy UFC on ESPN 46 loss to Jared Cannonier

Marvin Vettori’s confidence is not shaken by his UFC on ESPN 46 main event loss to Jared Cannonier.

Vettori (19-7-1 MMA, 9-5-1 UFC) was decisively beaten by unanimous decision in this past Saturday’s middleweight headliner at the UFC Apex. He had a solid first round but then went on to absorb tons of punishment from Cannonier (17-6 MMA, 10-6 UFC), who landed a new single-fight record for most significant strikes in a 185-pound bout.

Although he lost, Vettori was never dropped and did not appear eager to pursue a way out of the fight at any point. His first comments after the bout reflect as much, with Vettori putting out a short statement Monday indicating that the result has only motivated him to push forward stronger (via Instagram):

A lion remains a lion.
Spirit was never broken.
I’ll be back stronger, I promise you that.
#theitaliandream

Vettori, 29, fell to 2-3 in his past five fights after UFC on ESPN 46. His losses during that stretch have come to Cannonier, former UFC champ Robert Whittaker, and current divisional titleholder Israel Adesanya.

The Italian holds notable wins over Jack Hermansson, Paul Costa and Roman Dolidze in recent years.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 46.

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