Marvin Vettori’s return after about 20 months of inactivity could not have had a worse result. He faced Roman Dolidze at UFC Vegas 104 upon his return from the hiatus, and the bout went on for the entirety of the 25 minutes. However, the scorecards ran in favor of the Georgian middleweight, leaving Vettori with 2 options. He could either retire, or continue to fight his way to the championship title. 

The story of ‘The Italian Dream’ would come to an end with a 2-fight losing streak in case he opts for retirement. If he chooses to continue to struggle for the title, he’ll have to face some of his former opponents. But after the loss at UFC Vegas 104, who would land against Vettori next? Let’s find out!

1. Third fight against Israel Adesanya to prove himself

Vettori and Adesanya have already faced each other twice before. They met for the first time at UFC on FOX 29 in 2018. Both ‘The Last Stylebender’ and ‘The Italian Dream’ had a close fight. But the former Glory Kickboxing star rose victorious via a split decision. UFC 263 witnessed the rematch between Adesanya and Vettori, this time for the middleweight title. And yet again, Adesanya was declared the victor via a unanimous decision. But the Italian middleweight didn’t seem to accept defeat. He had to take up another fight to prove himself. 

But Vettori’s inactivity and recent injuries seem to have taken a toll on him. This was pretty clear during his performance against Dolidze at UFC Vegas 104. Nevertheless, the 31-year-old still has a good chance of getting back on track. As per the UFC athlete rankings, Vettori stands on the 8th pedestal of the middleweight list. This means he can still get a fight against the top fighters in the divisions. Apart from that, it’d be a nice opportunity for Adesanya to overturn his 3-fight losing spree. 

And if Vettori really wants to rise to the top and claim the middleweight championship belt, he will definitely have to go through the former 2-time middleweight champion. But Israel Adesanya has yet to say anything regarding a trilogy fight with Vettori. It’s definitely a high-profile match and the fighting community won’t be disappointed.

2. Second fight against Robert Whittaker

Vettori fought Robert Whittaker at UFC Paris in 2022. But it was ‘The Reaper’ who dominated the bout and won via a unanimous decision. The bout revealed the Italian’s shortcomings. Well, even though it was quite an interesting fight, things could have become even more interesting had Vettori focused more on his grappling defense and striking prowess. But now, things are a bit different. 

A rematch would mean a battle between #8 middleweight prospect vs. #5 middleweight contender. And a win would establish Vettori against a former middleweight champion. Not only that, but it would also propel ‘The Italian Dream’ a bit higher in the middleweight athlete rankings. Needless to say, Vettori direly needs that in order to get a shot at the championship title.

3. Trilogy fight to settle the score against Roman Dolidze

A trilogy fight between Vettori and Dolidze has been running around in MMA discussions after the events of UFC Fight Night 254. Both Vettori and Dolidze have one win against each other. A third fight is absolutely necessary to conclude the rivalry and find out who actually is the better fighter. Of course, Vettori knew that pretty well. That’s why he asked for a trilogy against ‘The Caucasian’ immediately after losing to him in the rematch. 

Right after the rematch at UFC Vegas 104, Vettori took to X and revealed his desire for a trilogy fight against Dolidze. He wrote, “I guess we’ll need a trilogy. The most nonsense trilogy, I agree with you bastards lol. But at this point it has to happen.” And Dolidze was also ready for a third bout. At the UFC Fight Night 254 post-fight press conference, the #12 middleweight prospect said, “He gave me this rematch. If UFC needed it and they tell me about it, I’ll probably do it, just out of respect. Because I respect that he agreed to fight me… He agreed to fight me. Just because of that respect of mine to him, I can do this.” However, he seemed to believe that the UFC would likely have other plans for him. 

Who do you think should Vettori go up against if he doesn’t retire? Is there any other fighter that you want ‘The Italian Dream’ to compete against? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.