April 10, 2021; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Marvin Vettori of Italy punches Kevin Holland in a middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 10, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mandatory Credit: Chris Unger/Handout Photo via USA TODAY Sports
Marvin Vettori set a UFC middleweight record with 11 takedowns to defeat Kevin Holland via unanimous decision in the main event of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night matinee in Las Vegas.
While it was a sound victory (50-44, 50-44, 50-44,) the Italian champion was left wanting more from his performance.
“I wanted to finish this guy and I wasn’t able to,” Vettori said, per ESPN. “But it was a dominant win. … I’m not the happiest right now, but I keep winning. I keep progressing.”
It was the fifth straight victory for Vettori (17-4-1), who is seeking a rematch with reigning middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
Holland (8-4) accepted the fight nine days prior after Vettori’s initial opponent, Darren Till, withdrew due to a broken collarbone. It was Holland’s second fight in just 21 days.
Vettori took Holland down at least once in all five rounds and caused his left eye to swell up with an elbow during the second round.
Also on Saturday’s main card, middleweight Julian Marquez choked opponent Sam Alvey unconscious using a rear-naked choke in the second round. Marquez (9-2) won his second straight fight since returning from a two-year, injury-related absence from the sport.
In a featherweight bout, Arnold Allen won a narrow unanimous decision over Sodiq Yusuff, with all three cards coming in at 29-28. The British mixed martial artist stayed perfect at 8-0 in his UFC career (17-1 overall).
Brazilian strawweight Mackenzie Dern bested American Nina Nunes with an arm-bar submission in the first round. Dern improved to 11-1 for her MMA career (6-1 in the UFC). Dern said she hopes her ranking improves from No. 11 to the top five.
–Field Level Media