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Australian UFC star Robert Whittaker has missed his shot at the UFC middleweight crown, with champion Israel Adesanya winning their fight by unanimous decision at UFC 271.
Key points:
- Whittaker was seeking revenge after losing the belt to Adesanya in 2019
- After a slow start, Whittaker improved in the rematch and forced a judges decision
- Former lightweight champion Justin Gaethje said he thought Whittaker should have won
There was better news for fellow Aussie Tai Tuivasa, who scored a shocking knockout win against KO king Derrick Lewis on the co-main event, but the Whittaker-Adesanya result was less clear-cut.
After Adesanya took the middleweight belt from Whittaker with a second-round knockout in Melbourne back in 2019, the Sydney-based fighter was more cautious in the face of his opponent's fierce striking power this time.
Adesanya clearly won the first round thanks to some powerful leg kicks, and while the elusive champion remained in control throughout, Whittaker did some damage with his left jab and scored takedowns in each of the remaining four stanzas.
Sent to the judges after five rounds in the octagon, two judges scored it 48-47 and the third had it as 49-46 to Adesanya.
The first and third rounds were the only ones that all three judges agreed upon though.
Referee Mike Beltran had it 49-46 but was the only judge who had him winning round two, and the only one who had Adesanya winning rounds four and five.
Predictably, former champion Whittaker said after the fight that he thought he had done enough to reclaim the belt.
While his positivity about his own chances could be chalked up to the usual confidence of a fighter who just went the distance with the champ, interim lightweight title-holder Justin Gaethje agreed.
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Look back at how UFC 271 unfolded in our live blog.
Live updates
By Jon Healy
On that note, I'm going to leave the octagon
Israel Adesanya is a deserved middleweight champion, but Robert Whittaker did himself proud tonight and on another day definitely could have scored an upset decision.
Big ups too, to Tai Tuivasa. No idea how the pride of Western Sydney beat UFC KO king Derrick Lewis, but he knocked him out with a brutal elbow.
Have a good one, readers. We'll be back before too long for more blog action; just you wait.
By Jon Healy
The scorecard
So the one judge who scored it 49-46, referee Mike Beltran, is also the only judge who didn't give Whittaker rounds four or five, and the only judge who did give him the points in round two.
Judging is always a mess, but I have no idea how you could say Whittaker didn't win round five.
By Jon Healy
Israel Adesanya beats Robert Whittaker by unanimous decision
Whittaker was clearly disappointed but that was one hell of a fight by him.
"I knew he was gonna bring everything because last time I took everything from him," Adesanya says.
Whittaker says he started slow but feels like he won every round after that.
"You know what they say, don't leave it to the judges," Whittaker says he's "happy" despite the loss.
Two judges score it 48-47 and one scores it 49-46. In commentary, former champion Daniel Cormier had it 48-47 and another ex-champ Michael Bisping reckons 49-46 was right.
Not many complaints from anyone except Whittaker, who was always going to say he thought he won. In saying that, lightweight star Justin Gaethje has thoughts...
By Jon Healy
It's gone the distance! It's up to the judges now
Huge respect between these two. Robert Whittaker has done what he could to challenge for this title and fought a good fight against a generational talent.
Adesanya won the first, Whittaker won the fifth. The rest are very close. Adesanya was in control for most of the fight, but still, Whittaker landed good shots and did get those takedowns.
The champion will probably retain, but I wouldn't like to be a judge.
By Jon Healy
Round five: Whittaker vs Adesanya II
Whittaker is working that left jab.
"This is a hard fight to judge," says Cormier in commentary.
Another hard left jab from Whittaker lands on Adesanya's chin.
Time is called as Whittaker shakes off an accidental eye-poke.
Another takedown, followed by Adesanya again getting straight back to his feet. I don't know, this could be his round.
And a big left hook coming out of the clinch. Adesanya tries to make a show of how much that didn't hurt, which definitely means it did.
By Jon Healy
Round four: Whittaker vs Adesanya II
Whittaker's going for a piggyback ride! He got the takedown, Adesanya got up, and Whittaker regripped the back, but Adesanya just piggybacked him over to the cage and got out of the clinch.
Commentator Daniel Cormier isn't happy with Whittaker for not taking advantage.
We're going to round five! Adesanya is in charge of this fight, but it's close.
By Jon Healy
Round three: Whittaker vs Adesanya II
Adesanya already has a six-inch reach advantage and he's using his kicks to keep Whittaker on the back foot as well.
Takedown by Whittaker! But again Adesanya gets back to his feet. He's so slippery and strong. Whittaker will get more credit for that takedown than the last, but he never really got control on the ground.
Adesanya is looking untouchable in the striking battle, but isn't connecting with much violence, and Whittaker is aggressing and getting those takedowns. If he wins the fourth round and it goes to points, this could be mighty interesting.
By Jon Healy
Round two: Whittaker vs Adesanya II
Whittaker's throwing some more desperate flurries, chasing some aggression. But Adesanya's dodging and weaving out of the way every time. That's how Whittaker got into trouble in the first fight between them. He looks outclassed at the moment though.
Whittaker's settled into the round and landed a few good lefts.
And he's got a takedown! Points scored, but Adesanya slipped out pretty calmly and got the fight back to a standing clinch.
Second round could be Whittaker's. He landed some good shots and got a proper takedown.
Adesanya is still dictating terms, but that was a much better round for the Aussie.
By Jon Healy
Round one: Whittaker vs Adesanya II
A few failed or checked leg kicks to start. Very watchful start by both in the first two minutes.
Adesanya is connecting with some of those leg kicks now. Whittaker might be feeling it in that front left calf.
DROPPED! Whittaker wears a straight left and goes down but fights his way out of it. May have been more of a slip than a real knockdown, but Adesanya is making all the running early, including seeing off two takedown attempts.
First round comfortably goes to the champ.
By Jon Healy
Robert Whittaker and Israel Adesanya are in the ring for their middleweight title fight
A little dap as Israel does a skipping lap around the cage. Respect between these two.
By Jon Healy
Keys to victory for Whittaker: Fight ugly, fight boring
He was too aggressive by his own admission in 2019 and ate shots for his trouble. He needs to tighten things up tonight.
By Jon Healy
Tai Tuivasa has knocked out Derrick Lewis!
Where did that come from? He was completely done and the UFC's most prolific knockout artist was on the charge, but Tuivasa found an elbow in close out of nowhere, rocked Lewis, and then caught him with another one to lay Lewis out flat.
Wow. Completely against the grain.
The shoey is done and he's just scored the biggest win of his young career.
"I like throwing elbows," he says. I mean, yeah.
Three shoeys done now. Pretty sure he's drinking out of strangers' shoes at this point. That's objectively rank.
By Jon Healy
Round two: Tai Tuivasa vs Derrick Lewis
Lewis has rocked Tuivasa! He's literally on the ropes!
By Jon Healy
The heavyweights are away in round one
Tai Tuivasa lands the first real shot of the fight with a hard low kick, and then fakes to get into a grapple up against the cage.
Lewis tries the high kick and it's fended away by Tuivasa, but the knockout king is dominating with his wrestling now.
Here comes the striking. And oh my god the striking. Tuivasa got taken down and just wore four or five shots right in the jaw. How's he still standing?
I mean, he is, but only just. He looks hurt and exhausted.
Easy scoring that first round. Complete dominance by Derrick Lewis.
By Jon Healy
Bam Bam Tuivasa is walking out to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
No wonder he's a fan favourite.
By Jon Healy
Aussie Tai Tuivasa is up next!
The heavy-hitting heavyweight is taking on number two contender Derrick Lewis. Bad news for Tai, Lewis is a Texas native, so the crowd will be incredibly one-sided.
Lewis is also described as "the UFC's knockout king" with the most KOs in history, but Tuivasa has that power too, as Nick Campton wrote...
"[Sometimes], a fight is just two big units throwing as many punches as they can as hard as they can until one of them falls down.
"If technical excellence is your bag, check out the main event between Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker, because Tuivasa-Lewis is raw, uncut hammer-throwing."
By Jon Healy
Jared Cannonier wins a banger of a middleweight bout
He only made it out of the second round because the bell stopped Derek Brunson's rear naked choke.
Brunson actually dominated with his wrestling for most of the fight, but Jared Cannonier rocked him with an elbow with about a minute left, and stayed all over him to end the fight with 30 seconds left.
Will he get a chance to challenge for the middleweight belt after this? Well Cannonier has singled out UFC boss Dana White in the crowd.
"Hey Dana, I want that shot next! Nobody else. Me!"
By Jon Healy
Joe Rogan couldn't be here tonight
Until the past couple of years, Joe Rogan was probably best known as a UFC commentator - a regular fixture of ringside comments and interviews in the octagon.
But the controversial podcast host isn't at UFC 271, apparently due to "scheduling conflicts".
In his place is good friend and former UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier.
By Jon Healy
Big middleweight showdown next up
Jared Cannonier and Derek Brunson are second and third challengers for the middleweight crown. So whoever wins this one, expect them to be in the running for a title shot against whoever holds the belt after tonight's main event.
By Jon Healy
The story of Whittaker vs Adesanya
Robert Whittaker won the interim middleweight title for the first time way back in 2017, beating the fancied Yoel Romero by unanimous decision to be crowned the interim champion.
UFC legend Georges St Pierre vacated the belt after being diagnosed with colitis, making Whittaker the undisputed champion, an he went about defending the belt.
First up was a rematch with Romero, which Whittaker controversially won by split decision in June 2018. But that put him on a collision course with The Last Stylebender, Israel Adesanya.
At Docklands in Melbourne, Whittaker was saved by the bell after getting laid out by a right hook in the first round, but no such luck in the second, with a devastating right-left combination from Adesanya flattening the Aussie and taking the belt off him.
Adesanya has defended the belt three times, including once against Romero, but he lost the fight before last after moving up to try to claim the light heavyweight championship. But he weighed in five pounds under the upper weight limit and got handily beaten by Jan Blachowicz.
Back down at middleweight, New Zealander/Nigerian Adesanya is a much more dangerous fighter and is favourite tonight against Whittaker.