UFC 271: Israel Adesanya Wins Whittaker, Retains UFC Middleweight Title

Israel Adesanya has defeted Whittaker in UFC 271 to retain UFC middleweight title.

Newsone reports that Nigerian Israel Adesanya retained his middleweight belt by defeating former champion Robert Whittaker via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) at UFC 271 on Saturday in Houston, United States.

This online news platform understands that the UFC 271 victory was Adesanya’s (22-1) fourth title defense and his 11-fight UFC win streak at middleweight, the second-longest in division history behind Anderson Silva’s 13 in a row.

Newsone Nigeria reports that with a height and reach advantage, Adesanya found success at range throughout the night and continuously attacked Whittaker’s lead leg. Whittaker had moments — landing several takedown attempts — but none resulted in any significant damage on the titleholder in a close bout.

Speaking after the rematch, the Nigerian said: “I knew he was going to bring everything cause last time I took everything away from him,” Adesanya said to Daniel Cormier after the fight. “So he had nothing to lose. Like I said, I’m the champ. You want it, come get it.”

On his part, Whittaker said: “I knew he was going to try and copy Jan [Blachowicz’s] homework,” Adesanya said about Whittaker’s takedowns. “But I’m the big dog in this yard, so he couldn’t take me down at all.”

Newsone reports that Adesanya stayed aggressive while Whittaker looked to be content on the outside, willing to counter whatever was thrown his way in the fifth and final round. Unfortunately, that strategy wasn’t good enough in the eyes of the judges to wrest the title from “The Last Style Bender”. Even though the judges felt he didn’t do enough to win, “The Reaper” didn’t see their viewpoint.

“I know I started off rocky in that first round, but I feel like I took every round after that,” Whittaker said. “What do they say? Don’t leave it to the judges. I’m happy that I fought my heart out. I’m gutted. I thought I did enough. I thought I took that.

“I was surprised with the decision. It is what it is. I’m not going to take anything away from him. He’s the champ. He beat me for the second time. We’re the two best in the world. I know this. He knows this. We know this.”