Vettori Warns Buckley After Sparring Callout

Marvin Vettori has no interest in beef with Joaquin Buckley but says he'll fight back if pushed.

Buckley challenged Vettori to no-rounds sparring at the UFC Performance Institute after the former middleweight title challenger criticized his recent campaign calling out fighters for using racial slurs. According to Sherdog, Buckley recalled a past encounter at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas where Vettori asked him to spar. Buckley declined because he was in fight camp, and Vettori allegedly called him soft and jokingly called him a name on the way out. Buckley now says he regrets not setting boundaries at the time.

Vettori Addresses Xtreme Couture Incident

Vettori downplayed the gym exchange and said he understood Buckley's fight preparation at the time. He was southpaw and Buckley was preparing for an orthodox opponent, so the refusal made sense. The Italian middleweight wrote on X that Buckley turns everything into a racial issue and warned that any physical confrontation will be met in kind. "You the one that said that you were gonna do something if you see me and I honestly got no problem with Buckley but I mean if you try something when you see me I'm probably surely gonna respond eventually," Vettori posted.

Buckley has spent recent weeks calling out multiple UFC fighters including Dustin Poirier, Max Holloway and Josh Hokit over their use of slurs. Vettori suggested the welterweight was looking for reasons to start problems that aren't there.

Neither fighter has a bout scheduled. Vettori last competed at middleweight in August while Buckley is coming off a win at welterweight in October.

Reported via:

• Sherdog — Marvin Vettori warns Joaquin Buckley over sparring dispute