Karl Roberson said he’s making rapid evolutions to his skillset and believes a different version of himself than what’s ever been seen will show up against Marvin Vettori at UFC on ESPN+ 29.
Roberson (9-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) has only been fighting professionally in MMA for less than five years. He was a kickboxer prior to that, but wanted to transition to the sport where there was most opportunity. That largely paid off, because he’s won four of six fights thus far and is now set up for a middleweight bout with Vettori (14-4-1 MMA, 4-2-1 UFC) on Wednesday’s card.
After not fighting since November, Roberson said he anticipates a whole new man to show up in the octagon.
“My evolution is pretty drastic,” Roberson said during Monday’s UFC on ESPN+ 29 virtual media day. “I’m pretty young in the sport. I started in GLORY kickboxing, then came to UFC. Everybody was like, ‘Oh, he’s a kickboxer – he doesn’t have a ground game.’ Then I started submitting people and now, ‘He’s a grappler.’ No, I’m not a grappler. I’m a mixed martial artist now. I’m coming full circle.
“I’m starting to learn a little more and evolve as a fighter and it’s starting to show. Everyone who has questions, you’re going to see more and more of my evolution. I’m going out there to hurt some of my opponents.”
UFC on ESPN+ 29 takes place at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. The entire card streams on ESPN+.
Although Roberson only has one less UFC fight than Vettori, he is certainly the less heralded name of the two. Vettori still has a lot of attention from his closely contested loss to Israel Adesanya, but Roberson said his focus doesn’t come down to track records, but instead what will happen when he gets in the octagon.
“I don’t really care if he’s overrated or underrated,” Roberson said. “I think he’s my opponent and I’m going in there and finish my opponent and make it exciting.”
