Israel Adesanya trolls himself and archrival Marvin Vettori ahead of UFC 332

Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori have long been at odds. Nevertheless, Adesanya has now sent the Italian combatant a message of support, albeit with a side of lighthearted criticism. 

Israel Adesanya lauds Marvin Vettori's durability, empathizes with him over his brother's unfortunate passing in a house fire

Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori have clashed in a pair of MMA matchups, both under the UFC promotional banner, over the course of their storied careers. The Nigeria-born New Zealander beat Vettori on both occasions -- via split decision in a non-title match in 2018, and by unanimous decision in a UFC middleweight title clash in 2021. 

Vettori has, however, been praised for the extraordinary durability he's displayed against Adesanya as well as several other fellow fighters in the dangerous UFC middleweight division over the years. 

"The Italian Dream" has suffered a few setbacks in his MMA career as of late. Additionally, he faced a personal tragedy last year. His younger brother Patrick Vettori passed away owing to smoke inhalation in a house fire in Mezzocorona in Trentino, Italy, in April of 2025. Vettori paid his respects to his brother, as did many other prominent athletes, including UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping. 

Taking to his official FreeStylebender YouTube channel a few hours ago, Israel Adesanya addressed Marvin Vettori's imminent return at UFC 332. Vettori has fought twice since the tragedy, and Adesanya appeared to express his support for his longtime rival in light of the incident. 

Moreover, lauding Vettori's durability, Adesanya stated, "Vettori is a hard man to finish. I don't think anyone's finished him in the UFC yet. I think he still hates me. I don't know why... Like, twice a year, he'll take shots at me for no reason. But, nah, I respect him." 

Adesanya spoke to his own brother in the video and said, "If I lost you in a fire, I'll be heartbroken... So, like, I empathize. So it's hard for me to feel anything bad for this man." 

Israel Adesanya trolls Marvin Vettori and himself before "The Italian Dream" fights Ismail Naurdiev at UFC 332

Israel Adesanya is currently on a four-fight losing streak. He dropped his UFC middleweight championship to Sean Strickland via unanimous decision in 2023.

"The Last Stylebender" was subsequently submitted by Dricus du Plessis in an attempt to reclaim the title in 2024. "Izzy" then suffered a TKO defeat against Nassourdine Imavov last year, which was followed by a TKO loss against Joe Pyfer earlier this year. 

Meanwhile, Marvin Vettori also happens to be on a four-fight losing streak. He's suffered consecutive unanimous decision defeats to Jared Cannonier, Roman Dolidze (in their rematch), Brendan Allen, and Brunno Ferreira. The Cannonier fight transpired in 2023, while the others took place last year. 

Previewing Vettori's return set for this weekend, Adesanya glanced at the former's MMA record and realized they're both on similar losing streaks. He noted, "Let me see. When was his last fight? ... Oh, sh**. He's like me." 

Adesanya proceeded to roll around with laughter over the self-deprecating joke, trolling himself and Vettori. He added, "He like me, for real."

The 37-year-old explained, "Yeah. I want him to win... When you win, I win. When I win, you win. Whether you like it or not, Vettori, we're locked in this sh** for life." 

Furthermore, Adesanya has lately been linked to a potential return at UFC Qatar on November 21. His opponent for the same is rumored to be Shara Magomedov. An official announcement hasn't been made as of yet, but "Izzy" is said to have started his training camp. 

On the other hand, Vettori is scheduled to fight Ismail Naurdiev at the UFC 332 event in Salt Lake City, Utah, this Saturday, October 3. 

Watch Israel Adesanya take a jibe at himself and Marvin Vettori below (*comments at the 1:21-minute mark of the video):