UFC 271 is almost upon us and all eyes will be on Houston, where Israel Adesanya is defending his middleweight crown against Robert Whittaker.
Back in 2019, ‘Bobby Knuckles’ lost his title against the Kiwi, who knocked him out in the second round of their clash in Melbourne.
Since then, Whittaker has jumped back on the horse and galloped towards the rematch with three successive wins against top level opposition.
Robert Whittaker is looking to rebound from the first defeat by upsetting Israel Adesanya
So, can he right the wrongs of last time and upset the odds to beat his rival?
A number of professional fighters have been asked for their prediction and most are siding with the champion.
The following UFC stars gave MMA Pros Pick their verdicts. Stephen Thompson said: ‘Adesanya seems untouchable at this point, man. He seems untouchable.
‘He’s like cleared the division out, but the person that I think would give him the most problems is Whittaker. I think Whittaker learned from his last one. I think his striking is on par with Adesanya, especially his karate movements, head kicks, and takedown defense.
Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson believes Adesanya has the edge at UFC 271
‘It’s going to be a stand-up war. But, uh, the counter striking of Adesanya is where Whittaker’s going to have his problems.
‘I think that’s how I ended up defeating him as well, was just the counter-punching he had problems with. So I’m going to, I’m leaning towards Adesanya.’
Fellow middleweight, Jack Hermansson, added: ‘I think Izzy’s gonna take it again. I think Robert is such a hard match-up for everybody and because he’s so great at closing the distance, he’s super quick, but Adesanya has a little bit too much reach on him.
‘It’s hard for him to get to him. So, stylistically it’s, tough for Rob in that one.
‘So maybe it’s gonna be interesting to see if he incorporates some wrestling after the Blachowicz fight. I’ll give the edge to Izzy.’
Jack Hermansson is also siding with the champion but thinks Whittaker needs to wrestle
Bellator star Gegard Mousasi talked up Whittaker’s chances but sided with the champion, saying: ‘Robert Whittaker is really good. So, I don’t know. You know, he won the first time. So you have to give the edge to Israel Adesanya.
‘Robert Whittaker is a tough individual, but if you get caught in a punch and you get knocked down, you know, toughness doesn’t matter.’
Former UFC two-weight champion Daniel Cormier was among the fighters to make their prediction on Helen Yee’s YouTube channel.
He said: ‘I think this time it is more competitive, Robert Whittaker took time away and in the fights that he has had, has shown improvement.
‘I don’t know how you improve when you’ve defended the belt and were a champion already but he is still getting better. I think the nervous energy he felt in the first fight is not going to be as prevelant. He’ll be more patient, me made mistakes and I don’t think he’ll make them again.’
Both Jared Cannonier and Kevin Holland expect a more competitive fight than the 2019 edition.
Daniel Cormier believes Whittaker will give a much better account of himself
Dan Hardy believes Whittaker will take the fight and might do so by submission
Israel Adesanya (left) and Robert Whittaker (right) both made weight ahead of UFC 271
Cannonier, who is also fighting on the same card against Derek Brunson, said: ‘I don’t want to say it will be the same because Whittaker is an exceptional martial artist. I’m sure he’ll make the adjestments necessary to try to get his title back. That fight can go either way, I like both of those guys, I like their styles.’
And Holland added: ‘I think it is a really good fight. I believe you can improve and grow as a fighter.
‘I think the range will be hard for Bobby Knuckles to play with, it may not be a different result but it will be a better fight.’
Although most were siding with Adesanya, Dan Hardy, one of the most revered minds in MMA, predicted on his Full Reptile Podcast: ‘In this one I think Robert Whittaker is going to do it, I think he might catch him in a submission and line up the trilogy, then Adesanya will take it back.’
Michael Bisping also backed the Australian to have a far better showing than before, telling his YouTube channel: ‘He’s not been in the same country, he’s in the form of his career, his wrestling numbers have picked up and gone through the roof, he’s not the champion, he’s the underdog, for all these reasons I think we’ll see a very different Robert Whittaker.
‘As a man, going out there and getting beaten the way he did last time is a tough pill to swallow, it is a rotting pain that stays with you for a long, long time. I’m not saying he’s going to win. But he is going to do way better.’