UFC Vegas 41 is in the books and Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa put on an instant classic.
The pre-fight drama reached an all-time high before UFC Vegas 41. Earlier in the week, Paulo Costa admitted he would be unable to adhere to the middleweight limit. In consequence, the main event was moved to 195-pounds. Then, in the eleventh hour, the promotion decided to move on with the bout but at 205-pounds instead. Vettori in the end would receive 20% (the minimum) from Costa’s fight purse.
Despite the pre-fight issues, thankfully the fight still received the green light as the affair was certainly one to remember. Even though the story of the week was Costa’s weight, he put those notions aside and fought like he was indeed defending his #2-spot at middleweight. Early on in the main event, the driving narrative was Costa’s insane power. Nevertheless, Vettori handled himself like a professional even in victory.
While Costa appeared to be a weight class bigger than “The Italian Dream”, it wouldn’t matter after seeing the pace Vettori put on Costa. “The Eraser” had his moments and came alive in the fourth round to the surprise of many. Following the five-round fight, many were astonished by Costa’s ability to generate power throughout the course of five rounds.
UFC Vegas 41: The Israel Adesanya Raffle
Both competitors have faced middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. In fact, Vettori has been tasked with fighting the champion twice now. In both contests, “The Italian Dream” struggled to inflict damage on the 185-pound titleholder. Initially, in the first contest, Vettori found success with takedowns and clinch pressure. Vettori has endured ten rounds with the middleweight champion.
On the other hand, Costa has had one, abrupt fight with Adesanya. The two middleweight titans met in Sept. of 2020 at UFC 253. Despite getting through the first round with the champion, Adesanya implored his feints and imposed his kickboxing style on Costa. During the title contest, Costa was unable to defend himself properly. The fight would culminate into a masterclass for “The Last Stylebender”. Specifically, the bout would end by TKO in the second round and would serve as Costa’s first professional defeat.
At UFC Vegas 41, the show delivered in spite of all the pre-fight craziness. It will be interesting to see how the UFC middleweight rankings are affected following Vettori’s win against the #2-ranked contender. Costa missed weight and the two fought at 205-pounds so, in theory, it’s possible they won’t be affected at all.
Check out what the pros had to say following UFC Vegas 41!
“What the f**k bro! That was right in my eyeballs!” – Marvin Vettori
— Dan Hardy (@danhardymma) October 23, 2021
It’s amazing how quick Costs is, even though he looks exhausted
— Dan Hardy (@danhardymma) October 23, 2021
185 Marvin Vettori just took a fight with a top LHW on days notice . No one can ever question his heart . We will see shortly if it was a smart or not so smart dec! #UFCVegas41
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) October 23, 2021
Cutelaba https://t.co/vZOYH62kvd
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) October 24, 2021
Whatever happens this is a great fight between Costa and Vittori ! #UfcVegas41
— Platinum Mike Perry (@PlatinumPerry) October 23, 2021
Stylebender kicked their legs tho
— Platinum Mike Perry (@PlatinumPerry) October 23, 2021
What a fight! Not happy with how he ended that 5th RD, but Vettori has nothing to hang his head about. That was a great performance from both men. Makes you wonder what this looks like at 185 lb, like it was intended to be. #UFCVegas41
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) October 23, 2021
🇮🇹 The Italian Dream put on a bonus worthy performance during yesterday's main event 👊
Who's next for @MarvinVettori?
[ #UFCVegas41 ] pic.twitter.com/eqEcFIJvkn
— UFC (@ufc) October 24, 2021
Vettori is thought though.
Great performance for both of them!#UFCVegas41— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) October 23, 2021
