Robert Whittaker News

Mike Pendleton - October 3, 2019

As UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and interim middleweight champion Israel Adesanya prepare to unify their titles in the main event of UFC 243, the anticipation is high. There have been many who believe this fight will break UFC records for highest attendance, and it is widely considered the biggest fight in Oceanic history given the pair’s ties to Australia and New Zealand. While both Whittaker and Adesanya are confident heading into this matchup, the UFC has set this fight up to be a spectacle for those in Australia as they have Marvel Stadium playing host to UFC 243.

Cole Shelton - October 3, 2019

In the main event of UFC 243, Robert Whittaker is looking to defend his middleweight title against the interim champion, Israel Adesanya. Heading into this fight, the champion is a -110 underdog while “The Last Stylebender” is a -120 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. As the odds suggest, the pros truly believe it is a pick’em fight, but the majority believe Robert Whittaker gets it done.

Natasha Hooper - October 3, 2019

This weekend Israel Adesanya goes head to head against Robert Whittaker in the main event of UFC 243. Want to know how to watch this UFC event? Find out below The event takes place at the Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. It starts on Saturday 5th October for the United States and Sunday the 6th of October for Australia. Find the official start times for the US, Australia and the UK below:

Cole Shelton - October 1, 2019

Robert Whittaker’s longtime jiu-jitsu coach Alex Prates recently said his pupil is a better version of Georges St-Pierre. “Maybe you’ll see Robert Whittaker using a style that I think is the one that suits him better but he never really needed it because it was always comfortable for him on the feet for most of his fights,” Prates told MMA Fighting, discussing Whittaker’s looming showdown with Israel Adesanya. “With Yoel Romero, for example, it would have been stupid to try to take him down. But Robert has great wrestling and great timing. I honestly think Robert is a better version of GSP. And we might see this now.”

Natasha Hooper - September 26, 2019

Israel Adesanya has already established himself as one of the best middleweights in the world. With a record of 17-0, he is confident that his winning strategy will allow him to “pick apart” Robert Whittaker at UFC 243. It’s been a big year for Adesanya. “The Last Stylebender” got tongues wagging in a riveting three-round performance against former UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva in February at UFC 234. His creative arsenal of striking attacks was enough to earn a unanimous decision victory. Most recently, Adesanya took on Kelvin Gastelum in a fight that exceeded expectation. Despite being a close match, the tides turned in Adesanya’s favour and he took home a decision win after five fun rounds.

Tom Taylor - September 23, 2019

UFC middleweight champ Robert Whittaker has won his last few fights with his striking, but striking certainly isn’t his only skill. In fact, Whittaker is so well-rounded that his coach Alex Prates considers him a “better version of” Georges St-Pierre. “Maybe you’ll see Robert Whittaker using a style that I think is the one that suits him better but he never really needed it because it was always comfortable for him on the feet for most of his fights,” Prates told Guilherme Cruz of MMA Fighting. “With Yoel Romero, for example, it would have been stupid to try to take him down. But Robert has great wrestling and great timing. I honestly think Robert is a better version of GSP. And we might see this now.”

Tom Taylor - September 12, 2019

UFC middleweight champ Robert Whittaker is scheduled to defend his title opposite interim champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 243 this October. In the opinion of long-time middleweight contender Uriah Hall, however, this Whittaker-Adesanya matchup is doomed to fail. Hall believes that Whittaker will ultimately withdraw from this fight, just as he did last time he was scheduled to fight in his native Australia. In that event, Hall says he’ll happily step in on short-notice to replace Whittaker against Adesanya — a fighter he seems to respect.

Tom Taylor - August 29, 2019

Robert Whittaker was expected to defend his UFC middleweight title against Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 234 in in Melbourne, Australia back in February. Regrettably, the Australian was forced out of this fight at the last minute with a hernia and a collapsed bowel that required immediate, emergency surgery. Whittaker says this unfortunate twist of fate left him in a pit of depression and despair. He opened up on this struggle on a recent episode of Submission Radio.

Fernando Quiles - August 22, 2019

Robert Whittaker has a prediction for his bout with Israel Adesanya and it doesn’t involve the judges. Whittaker and Adesanya are set to collide on Oct. 5. “The Reaper” is the UFC middleweight title holder, while “The Last Stylebender” holds interim gold. They’ll do battle in a title unification bout. Their scrap will take place inside Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia.

Adam Martin - August 15, 2019

UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and interim champ Israel Adesanya squared off Wednesday at the UFC 243 pre-fight press conference. As you can expect, it was a tense staredown between the world’s top two middleweights. Check out the video below.

Cole Shelton - July 31, 2019

Israel Adesanya is set to fight Robert Whittaker in the main event of UFC 243 this October in Australia. Yet, in the lead up to the fight, a lot of the talk has been about the budding rivalry between Jon Jones and Israel Adesanya. It even got the point where “Bones” and Whittaker were talking about training with one another for this title fight.

Tom Taylor - July 30, 2019

The next UFC middleweight title fight on the calendar will go down at UFC 243 on October 6, when undisputed champion Robert Whittaker will attempt to defend his title against interim champion Israel Adesanya. Kelvin Gastelum, one of the top contenders in the division, will be watching this fight very closely. Speaking to South China Morning Post recently, Gastelum weighed in on this middleweight title fight. He has fought Adesanya previously, losing a decision to “Stylebender” in April, and has also been scheduled to fight Whittaker, though the bout unfortunately never happened. Needless to say, he’s got some unique insight into the matchup.

Tom Taylor - July 18, 2019

These days, it seems like the majority of UFC fighters are trash talkers. Whether it’s to build interest in a fight or get under their opponent’s skin, many fighters seem to have embraced this verbal side of the game. UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker, however, has not. Speaking on a recent episode of Submission Radio, Whittaker gave his take on all the trash talk in MMA. In his eyes, the time and energy fighters spend trash talking would be well spent elsewhere — like in the gym.

Tom Taylor - July 10, 2019

Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker don’t even know where their UFC 243 middleweight title fight will occur yet, but Adesanya is already letting the trash talk fly. Speaking at the UFC Hall of Fame ceremony over the weekend, the interim champion Adesanya shared his thoughts on his first staredown with the undisputed champ Whittaker.

Fernando Quiles - July 10, 2019

Robert Whittaker has no plans to be goaded into a verbal spat with Israel Adesanya. Whittaker and Adesanya are set to collide in a middleweight title unification bout on Oct. 5. The championship tilt will serve as UFC 243’s main event. While the headliner and event have been announced, a location has not. While many had anticipated Melbourne, UFC president Dana White revealed during the summer press conference 2019 that nothing is a lock yet.

Fernando Quiles - July 8, 2019

Michael Bisping thinks Israel Adesanya is due for his comeuppance. UFC 243 will play host to a middleweight title unification bout. Champion Robert Whittaker will collide with interim title holder Adesanya on Oct. 5. A location for UFC 243 has not been announced.

Christopher Taylor - June 26, 2019

UFC light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones will return to the octagon against dangerous knockout artist Thiago Santos at next month’s UFC 239 event. While ‘Bones’ is clearly focused on his upcoming fight with the Brazilian, it hasn’t stopped questions surrounding future fights with bitter rival Daniel Cormier and rising star Israel Adesanya from being asked. Jones, who has taken shots at both ‘DC‘ and ‘Stylebender’ in recent weeks, took the opportunity to add salt to the wound during a recent interview.

Tom Taylor - June 20, 2019

Robert Whittaker captured the UFC interim middleweight title with a July, 2017 defeat of Yoel Romero. He was then promoted to undisputed champion when Georges St-Pierre vacated the undisputed title in late 2017. Current interim champ Israel Adesanya, who fights Robert Whittaker at UFC 243 in October, believes Whittaker’s unconventional road to middleweight gold casts doubt on his status as a legitimate champion.