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Ahead of his UFC Paris fight against Robert Whittaker this weekend, Marvin Vettori gave his honest opinion on Paulo Costa and his social media accounts. While he finds the Brazilian hilarious, the No.2-ranked middleweight insisted that he is undeserving of a rematch.
'The Italian Dream' wants to push on from his win over 'Borrachinha' and earn back-to-back victories in his pursuit of a title shot. The 28-year-old has had one crack at the 185lb strap but was soundly beaten over five rounds by Israel Adesanya.
When questioned whether he would entertain a rematch against Paulo Costa during UFC Paris media day, Marvin Vettori dismissed the idea but admitted that he's a fan of the Brazilian's Twitter antics.
"I'm actually a fan of his Twitter, I'm not gonna lie. His Twitter is so f***ing funny. I don't know, I don't think he deserves it [a rematch], not after a fight like that especially [against Luke Rockhold]. It's not in my mind right now... It was nice to watch [Costa vs. Rockhold], from a fan's point of view, but from an elite fighter's point of view, there wasn't much. It was an all-out war. Not much game planning... It was an all-out brawl, messy, slugfest kind of thing."
The heavy-hitting middleweight put on an incredible fight the last time we saw him in the octagon, going all three rounds against Luke Rockhold. Following a blood-fueled clash, the former UFC and Strikeforce 185lb champion retired from mixed martial arts and earned the respect of many who'd previously doubted him.
Despite putting on a solid display in his last outing, Paulo Costa is 1-2 in his last three appearances and must put together a couple more wins to force himself back into the title picture.
Check out Marvin Vettori's media day appearance below:
What must Marvin Vettori do to earn a shot at UFC gold?
Marvin Vettori finds himself in a powerful position in the middleweight division, as he is among the short list of names who can realistically earn a shot at the throne in the near future.
Israel Adesanya will defend his title in the UFC 281 headliner later this year against a man who has twice beaten him during their kickboxing days, the intimidating Alex Pereira.
If Vettori wins in impressive fashion against Robert Whittaker, he will fancy his chances against any top fighter in his division and has a real chance of becoming the first ever Italian UFC champion.
Vettori will no doubt be backing 'Poatan' come November 12, as it'll be easier for him to secure a bout with the Brazilian than a third against Adesanya, who he is 0-2 against.
