Israel ‘The Last Stylebender’ Adesanya successfully defended his UFC Middleweight title at UFC 271 following a unanimous decision victory over Robert Whittaker in Houston.
Both men had faced each other in October 2019 at UFC 243, with Adesanya emerging with the Middleweight title for the first time on that occasion following a second-round knockout. The Nigerian fighter had completed three successful title defences before facing Whittaker for a second time at UFC 271.
Judges Jacob Montalvo and Doug Crosby had Adesanya winning the first three rounds and Whittaker taking the final two. Judge Mike Beltran had Adesanya winning all but the second round, which he gave to Whittaker.
Adesanya outlanded Whittaker 79-59 in significant strikes, according to UFC Stats. But Whittaker landed more significant strikes to the head, 38-36, with Adesanya outlanding Whittaker in strikes to the legs, 29-13. Whittaker landed four takedowns in the fight as he looked to use his wrestling to overpower Adesanya.
At the end of the fight, the scorecard read 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46 in favour of Adesanya, who claimed an 11th consecutive win in the Middleweight division, making him the man with the second longest streak in the division.
Adesanya joins fellow African fighters Kamaru Usman and Francis Ngannou in retaining his title at UFC 271 after both men retained their titles in UFC 268 and UFC 270, respectively.
