Scouting Report: Marvin Vettori

Marvin Vettori

Born: Sept. 20, 1993 (Age: 29) in Mezzocorona, Italy
Division: Middleweight
Height: 6’0”
Reach: 74”
Record: 19-6-1 (9-4-1 UFC)
Association: Kings MMA
Stage of Career: Prime

Summary: Vettori’s style is based on simplicity. While he does not do anything fancy, he has proven proficient at almost all fundamental aspects of fighting and shows no clear weaknesses. That is a difficult combination to beat, which is why only the best UFC middleweights have managed to do so. Vettori features competent but unexceptional standup, with an average jab backed up by a solid left cross and right book, both of which lack power. He can also call upon a nice body kick. Vettori does everything well in the grappling department, too, from well-timed technical shots and effective top control to sound submissions and decent ground-and-pound. Meanwhile, he excels on the defensive side of the equation.

STRIKING

• Stance: Southpaw.
• Hand Speed: Slightly above average.
• Jab: He paws with it at times, but does connect with occasional impact.
• Cross: Straight and sudden but lacks oomph.
• Right Hook: Thrown with a tight arc and generally accurate, but it does not measure up in the power department.
• Overhand Left: Keeps it sheathed.
• Uppercuts: Does not use them.
• Solitary Striker or Volume Puncher: Fires punches in bunches but mostly in a series of straights.
• Favorite Combination(s): The one-two, which lacks power despite its effectiveness.
• Leg Kicks: While powerful, he loads up on them so heavily that they are telegraphed and easy to avoid. He does not help himself by throwing too much off the back foot and appearing off-balance at times.
• Body Kicks: Just as heavy as his leg kicks but better disguised.
• Head Kicks: Does not utilize them.
• Chains Kicks to Punches: Shows the ability to fire a leg kick at the end of his punches at times.

Vettori’s striking can best be described as competent. He tends to paw with his jab, and while he throws a left cross and right hook with sound properties, both punches lack power. Vettori generally sticks to those three punches. Despite his muscular physique, his hand speed rates just a little above average. He often throws more than one shot at a time, even if they end up being a series of straights. Vettori features heavy leg kicks, but they are often telegraphed due to his tendency to load up on them. His body kicks are an underrated part of his game. Vettori has proven to be defensively proficient, which makes him difficult to outpoint in the standup department.

CLINCH

• Physical Strength: A massive, powerful middleweight.
• Technique: While nothing stands out, he has a strong grasp of the fundamentals.
• Knees: Effective, especially when an opponent ducks his head in a predictable manner.
• Elbows: Does not throw them.
• Defense Against Knees/Elbows: Stellar due to his ability to secure takedowns in such scenarios.

Vettori has a strong clinch game at his disposal, as he has proven adept at grinding for takedowns at close range. Additionally, he features powerful knee strikes, particularly against opponents with a predictable approach.

GRAPPLING

• Wrestling from a Shot: Shoots technical double- and single-legs, backed by persistence. He can also time them in reaction to an opponent’s strikes or succeed with them in a wild scramble.
• Wrestling in the Clinch: A fundamentally sound but less consistent source of takedowns.
• Takedown Defense: Consistently stuffed takedowns from decent wrestlers like Andrew Sanchez, Jack Hermansson and Roman Dolidze.
• Ability to Return to Feet: Fantastic at creating scrambles off his back and excels at reversing position.
• Submissions: His guillotine features a solid squeeze but affords opponents to much room to escape. Vettori can also lock in an effective rear-naked choke with fewer holes. However, at his current level, he cannot threaten as effectively.
• Defense/Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu from the Bottom: Difficult to say, as he has not stayed on his back for long. Likely excellent, though, since it feeds into his ability to create scrambles.
• Top Control: Controls wrists well and sticks to his opponents, although he often allows them to get back to their feet when he zeroes in on a guillotine or tries to open up with his ground-and-pound.
• Ground-and-Pound: Features solid punches and can score to the body and head. He can do real damage with a tight, short elbow—easily his most dangerous blow in ground exchanges.

Vettori is a stout grappler who excels at landing takedowns from a shot due to his proficiency and persistence with single- and double-legs. Once on top, he offers solid submission skills, though he has proven far less threatening against upper-echelon fighters. It has become exceedingly difficult to gain advantages against Vettori in this phase of the game. He leans on outstanding takedown defense, and even if he concedes a takedown, he is fantastic at creating scrambles off his back and reversing position.

INTANGIBLES

• Athleticism/General Physical Strength: Tremendously powerful with average agility and dynamism.
• Cardio: Tends to slow down by the second round. However, he can compete far more competently than most fighters when fatigued.
• Chin: Withstood a tremendous amount of punishment against Robert Whittaker and Israel Adesanya, neither of whom managed to finish him.
• Recuperative Powers: Recovered quickly when hurt against Whittaker and Adesanya.
• Intelligence: Pursues the fight in areas that are most advantageous for him and avoids tactical mistakes.