UFC Fight Night 254 headliner Marvin Vettori aiming for career resurgence after major surgery
The last time Vettori (19-7-1 MMA, 9-5-1 UFC) was seen in the cage was back in June 2023 when he lost a unanimous decision to fellow veteran Jared Cannonier. Since that bout, a lot has changed for 'The Italian Dream.' For starters, Vettori moved from Las Vegas to South Florida to train at American Top Team in Coconut Creek – which was a much-needed change for his career.
'I changed gyms because I felt I had to do something different – so yeah, I'm definitely not the same,' Vettori said at Wednesday's UFC Fight Night 254 media day. 'I found a home at ATT, and I'm happy that I'm representing them for the first time this time around. I've been there for a while, and it's amazing, to be honest. A lot of growth. I'm going to show it. Talk is talk at the end of the day.'
Not long after, Vettori unfortunately suffered a bad shoulder injury. He tried recovering with just physical therapy, but the injury got worse. In June 2024, Vettori had to undergo surgery. It was a rough patch in his career.
'There were times when I was like, 'F*ck, is it going to be back to normal?,' because it takes so f*cking long,' Vettori explained. 'The shoulder, man, every angle you have to train because otherwise you'd be good here, but out here is weak. I'm pretty stubborn, I'm able to get after it, but I had moments, I was like, 'F*cking hell, is it going to be back to normal? Do I have to figure some other way to fight?' But sure enough, people around you and doctors tell you that eventually you'll see. People get injured all the time and come back. I was always trying to be opposite.'
Vettori headlines Saturday's UFC Fight Night 254 (ESPN+) at the UFC Apex in a rematch against Roman Dolidze (14-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC), who's on a two-fight winning streak.
Vettori is eager to return, and just wants to get the ball rolling again in his career. He's 2-2 since challenging then champion Israel Adesanya for the UFC middleweight title. He's not focused at rankings or title contention, just wants to return.
'I just see it as me getting back,' Vettori said regarding his fight against Dodlidze. 'The rest is extra. That's what I see, me getting back and feeling good, putting all the pieces together. It's been a while. The rest is extra. We'll see.'
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie's event hub for UFC Fight Night 255.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time Magazine
a minute ago
- Time Magazine
White House to Hold UFC Fight on U.S.'s 250th Birthday
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will hold the first-ever professional mixed-martial arts fight at the White House during America's 250th birthday celebration next year. UFC CEO Dana White confirmed on Tuesday that the fight would take place on July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. 'It is definitely going to happen,' he told the hosts of CBS Mornings. White said he already spoke with President Donald Trump, a long-time UFC fan and friend of the CEO, and will meet with Trump and his daughter Ivanka Trump later this month to continue planning the event. 'When he called me and asked me to do it, he said, 'I want Ivanka in the middle of this,'' White said of the President, on CBS Mornings. 'So Ivanka reached out to me, and her and I started talking about the possibilities, where it would be and, you know, I put together all the renderings.' Trump told his supporters at an event in Iowa last month that he wanted to have a UFC fight at the presidential residence. 'We're going to have a UFC fight, think of this, on the grounds of the White House. We have a lot of land there,' Trump said at the time. 'Dana's going to do it. Dana's great. One of a kind.' It is not yet clear which UFC fighters will participate in the showdown. White told The Associated Press Tuesday that it was too early to talk about the possible main event. Longtime UFC star Conor McGregor, who last fought in 2021 and visited the White House in March, expressed interest shortly after Trump spoke about a potential fight last month. 'I would be honoured! Count me in!' McGregor wrote on X. Since his last fight, McGregor was found liable for sexually assaulting a woman in a hotel room in 2018 in a civil case last year. Trump has attended UFC fights during both his first and second terms. In April, the President went to a fight in Miami with several members of his Administration, including then-head of the Department of Government Efficiency Elon Musk, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, FBI Director Kash Patel, and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The fight will be part of what the White House has said will be 'a full year of festivities' for the nation's 250th birthday. To plan the celebration, Trump formed a task force, called the 'Salute to America 250 Task Force.' 'Task Force 250 invites citizens to have a renewed love of American history, experience the beauty of our country, and ignite a spirit of adventure and innovation that will raise our nation to new heights over the next 250 years,' the website reads.
Fox News
18 minutes ago
- Fox News
Dana White reiterates that UFC White House fights are 'absolutely going to happen'
President Donald Trump revealed plans last month to have a UFC card at the White House to celebrate the United States' 250th birthday next year. UFC president Dana White admitted shortly after the announcement that he had no idea Trump would mention it in a public setting, but the ball has been rolling ever since. White recently discussed potential matchups, but they don't seem to be hypotheticals at this point. "It's absolutely going to happen," White told The Associated Press. "Think about that, the 250th birthday of the United States of America, the UFC will be on the White House south lawn live on CBS." "This is a one-of-one event." White promised "the baddest card of all time" during a podcast appearance, confirming that Jon Jones, who retired on June 21 and celebrated his most recent victory with a Trump dance with the president in attendance, went back into the drug-testing pool. "Everybody wants to fight on this card. Literally everybody," White told the "Full Send Podcast." Jones all but confirmed this week he'd be fighting at the White House. "The moment I heard Donald Trump's announcement, I started training again," Jones said in a recent X post. Conor McGregor quickly showed interest in fighting at the White House, and White even said McGregor "could be" on the same card as Jones in the nation's capital. Trump has attended numerous UFC events over the years, most recently in Newark, N.J. for UFC 316. The UFC will get rid of its pay-per-view model as part of its massive $7.7 billion agreement to air its events on Paramount+ starting in 2026, its parent company TKO announced on Monday. Paramount will distribute 13 of its major events and 30 Fight Nights through its direct-to-consumer platform, Paramount+, with select events airing on CBS. There will be no additional cost for fans who want to watch UFC numbered events.
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Anthony Hernandez: 'No f*cking idea' why UFC flying me to Chicago, but 'it's a good sign'
Anthony Hernandez admits he's not quite sure what the UFC's intentions are by flying him out to Chicago this week. Hernandez (15-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) scored a dominant submission finish of Roman Dolidze (15-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) in this past Saturday's UFC on ESPN 72 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Hernandez later revealed that the organization will be flying him out to Chicago to attend Saturday's UFC 319 middleweight title fight between champion Dricus Du Plessis (23-2 MMA, 9-0 UFC) and Khamzat Chimaev (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) at United Center. With Nassourdine Imavov taking on Caio Borralho on Sept. 6 in Paris, and Reinier de Ridder outlasting Robert Whittaker last month at UFC on ABC 9, many fighters are in the running for the next title shot. So why is the UFC flying out Hernandez? "I have no f*cking idea, but I'm going to go find out," Hernandez told MMA Junkie Radio on Monday. "Hopefully it's good, though. I feel like it's a good sign. Especially with showing out that close to the fight, I think it's good." Although he's on an eight-fight winning streak, "Fluffy" is aware he'll likely have to fight one more time before getting his desired title shot. "For sure, I get that the division is crazy," Hernandez said. "I was actually talking to Caio, and I'm like I'd hate to be the matchmaker right now because sh*t's going crazy right now. The middleweight division's been on fire, which is great for all of us." embed: This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 319: Anthony Hernandez encouraged by being flown out to Chicago
