Ever since losing his one and only chance at the title, Marvin Vettori has struggled to find consistency inside the Octagon. With a record of 2-3 in his last five encounters, the middleweight star has slipped out of the top-5 and a title shot currently seems far-fetched. Regardless, Vettori’s on the grind again as he returns this weekend at UFC Vegas 104 against Roman Dolidze in a rematch.
Despite the ups and downs in his career path, Marvin Vettori has stood out as one of the top middleweight contenders of the modern era. With a serious and persistent approach to the fight, he’s one of very few fighters in the UFC hailing from his native land, that has a rich history and cultural heritage. So, let’s explore his roots and learn about the 31-year-old on a personal note.
Is Marvin Vettori Italian? Ethnicity and nationality
If we take a look at his nickname – ‘The Italian Dream’ – that already gives us an idea about his nationality. Born in Trento, Italy, Marvin Vettori grew up the eldest of three in his family. However, information on his father and mother, Vicente and Rafaele Vettori, is scarce in the public domain. The situation is quite similar when it comes to Marvin’s ethnicity.
While he’s never publicly spoken about his ethnicity, Marvin Vettori’s hometown is pretty diverse. Trentino, the province where Trento is located, is comprised of people belonging to German and Italian communities, and an indigenous community by the name of Ladin. Vettori could belong to any one of these groups.
Well, there seems to be some ambiguity surrounding Marvin Vettori’s origins, so now, let’s turn our attention to other aspects of his personal life, like his faith. Here’s what we know.
What religion does Marvin Vettori follow?
Marvin Vettori appears to be an Italian through and through, given that his surname is a native to that country. However, much like his ethnicity, his religion remains unknown, but if we could make a guess, he could be a Roman Catholic. The reason behind that assumption is that Italy has always been predominantly a Catholic country, so there’s a high chance that Vettori falls into that bracket.
Meanwhile, Vettori was enamored by fighting at a very young age and wanted to pursue it as a career after watching the likes of Fedor Emelianenko, Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ among others compete in PRIDE FC. After turning 13, ‘The Italian Dream’ spent a lot of time going from gym to gym to pick up as much knowledge as he could. However, the sport is not as developed in Italy as it is in other parts of the world, which is why there was a limit to how much Vettori could grow as a martial artist in Italy.
Hence, ‘The Italian Dream’ set out for London, where he stayed for a few years before moving to the United States to hone his skills at King’s MMA under Rafael Cordeiro. The Trento native was signed to the UFC when he was just 23, making his debut at UFC 202 and has not looked back ever since.
Marvin Vettori has a chip on his shoulder as he approaches his return after sitting out on the sidelines for a whole year in 2024. Moreover, he will face a man he already beat in Roman Dolidze. Do you think he’ll be able to win again, against the dangerous Georgian grappler? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.
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