Marvin Vettori stepped into a short-notice main event, that turned to be the biggest win of his career.
The rising middleweight replaced Kevin Holland on about a week’s notice against Jack Hermansson at UFC on ESPN 19 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
The bout unfolded as a brutal slugfest, with both guys throwing at a high volume and giving as good as they got.
Vettori landed more frequently and in a more pinpoint manner over the course of 25 minutes, and that was enough to earn him a unanimous decision.
The judges’ scores were 49-46, 49-46, and 49-45.
Welcome to the Top 5️⃣!
🇮🇹 @MarvinVettori is the face of Italian MMA. #UFCVegas16 pic.twitter.com/2agixOR6F2
— UFC (@ufc) December 6, 2020
“I feel like I could do much better but man this guy was tough. I thought I would finish him but he came back. Today, I was stronger, man.”
Hermansson has dropped two of his past three.
Complete UFC on ESPN 19 results:
Marvin Vettori def. Jack Hermansson via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-45)
Jamahal Hill def. Ovince Saint Preux via TKO (punches) — Round 2, 3:37
Gabriel Benitez def. Justin Jaynes via TKO (knee, punches) – Round 1, 4:06
Roman Dolidze def. John Allan via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
Jordan Leavitt def. Matt Wiman via knockout (slam) – Round 1, 0:22
Louis Smolka def. Jose Quinonez via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 2:15
Ilia Topuria def. Damon Jackson via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:38
Jake Collier def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
