Marvin Vettori vs Roman Dolidze kicked off the main card at UFC 286. Despite the caliber of the fighters involved, no one really expected this match to be a contender for fight of the night. However, the middleweights proved many fans wrong as they delivered an absolute war inside the octagon at the O2 Arena.
The first round was very close with barely any feeling out process. Both Vettori and Dolidze started firing on all cylinders from the get-go. However, it was the Georgian who landed the bigger punches and combos in this round. Roman even rocked Vettori at one point in the round. However, Marvin outstruck Roman in this round, landing 38 significant strikes to his opponent’s 29.
the stats for Vettori – Dolidze #UFC286
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) March 18, 2023
Vettori had 40 significant strikes in R3 compared to 26 for Dolidze pic.twitter.com/eJeWWs0fyc
The next round saw more of the same but Vettori made some slight adjustments. His output slightly lowered, which saw his opponent capitalize. However, The Italian Dream still managed to land all but one of his 15 attempted leg kicks. Dolidze landed more strikes to the head but he was still heavily outstruck by his opponent.
In the third and final round, both fighters somehow stepped on the gas even more. Their output also saw an uptick from the second round, especially Dolidze’s. But this round is also the one that probably sealed the fight in Vettori’s favor. He landed 5 more headshots than his opponent while also out-landing him in the significant strikes, 40 to 26. During the entire fight which saw no takedowns, he was also the more efficient and accurate striker.
Was Roman Dolidze robbed against Marvin Vettori at UFC 286?
The end of this fight saw Bruce Buffer announce Marvin Vettori as the winner via unanimous decision. The result was not shocking to many as this fight was extremely close. And, the judges agreed with this sentiment with the exception of Paul Sutherland. Paul scored all 3 rounds in favor of Vettori. It seems this fight was a shutout for the Italian middleweight.
Marvin Vettori/Roman Dolidze scorecards#UFC286 pic.twitter.com/ylO54qzibs
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) March 18, 2023
In contrast to Sutherland’s scoring, his peer David Lethaby scored the first round for Roman Dolidze. But he scored the next two rounds for Vettori, giving him the nod with a 29-28 scorecard. Finally, judge Ben Cartlidge scored the first round for Roman. However, he too felt that Vettori won the subsequent rounds and scored the fight 29-28 in Vettori’s favor.
This fight really was quite close as both middleweights brought the best out of each other. However, Vettori, a man who has fought former champs like Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker, managed to use his big fight experience and prevail under the bright lights of the O2 Arena in London at UFC 286.
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