Marvin Vettori, Karl Roberson take rivalry to UFC cage

Karl Roberson and Marvin Vettori were scheduled for a bout in Jacksonville exactly one month ago only to have the contest called off 24 hours before they were set to step in the cage. They nearly fought anyway, in a hotel lobby, creating an immediate intense rivalry that has sparked a great deal of interest in the matchup.

Now they are finally set to settle their differences as their middleweight bout will serve as the co-main event of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 172 card at the Apex facility in Las Vegas.

“This is definitely bigger now,” Roberson said. “The buzz is fantastic. People are looking at this fight. People consider this the main event. I’m looking forward to it.”

The May fight was called off when Roberson fell ill after unsuccessfully trying to cut weight the day before the bout. Vettori agreed to the fight despite Roberson missing the mark, but medical staff suggested Roberson shouldn’t compete.

Because of the unique circumstances of that card, with the fighters all isolated in a mostly empty hotel, an angry Vettori encountered Roberson in the lobby and a heated exchange was captured on video, with Vettori challenging him to fight.

The UFC quickly decided to rebook the fight as soon as possible and gave it a lofty spot on the card due to the hype.

“I’d rather get a co-main event purely on skill instead of theatrics and banter at a hotel, but it is what it is,” Roberson said. “We got here, so it’s time to show out.”

Roberson missed weight again on Friday, coming in 4.5 pounds over the limit at 190.5. Vettori agreed to take 30 percent of Roberson’s purse as compensation and the fight will proceed, a scenario Vettori was prepared for on Thursday.

“I had some concern taking the fight again because he didn’t make weight and he was claiming to be so unwell a month ago,” Vettori said. “What is going to change in a month? Now that we’ve made it this far, he better step in the cage on Saturday. He better (expletive) show up.”

The 26-year-old Italian’s only loss in his last five fights was to current middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. He hopes to make a statement with a third straight win on Saturday.

He admits it has gotten personal with Roberson.

“I’m going to make him pay,” Vettori said. “That’s all it is. I take the fact that he messed with my life and my team’s life kind of personal. But at the end of the day, the best thing I can do is beat him in a dominant fashion.

“It’s too much work to not get to fight. You’re going to pull out the day before the fight, you’re going to get a reaction from me. … I just happened to see him in the lobby and I flipped.”

Roberson, who said he thinks the Jacksonville encounter was set up by Vettori and his team, believes he has already won the mental game.

“It’s never personal for me,” the 29-year-old New Jersey native said. “I couldn’t care less what he feels or how he thinks. He’s an emotional kid. He showed that in the hotel and he’s shown it in his interviews. He can’t control himself. I’m just going to pick him apart and whoop his (expletive). “

The main card, headlined by a women’s flyweight bout between Cynthia Calvillo and Las Vegan Jessica Eye, will air on ESPN and stream on ESPN-Plus at 6 p.m.

Eye also missed weight on Friday and will forfeit 25 percent of her purse.

Preliminary card action will also air on ESPN and ESPN-Plus at 4 p.m., a later start time precipitated by the removal of a featherweight bout between Jordan Griffin and Darrick Minner from the card due to Minner’s weight-cutting complications.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.