Following Khamzat Chimaev’s withdrawal last week, Australia’s Robert Whittaker will this Sunday take on late replacement Ikram Aliskerov in what will be a must-win fight for the 33-year-old Sydney-based middleweight fighter.
The current champion Dricus Du Plessis is scheduled to defend his title against Israel Adesanya, with Whittaker hoping to get another shot at the winner, having unsuccessfully faced Adesanya twice and Du Plessis once previously. Unranked in the UFC rankings, Sambo practitioner Aliskerov will also be hoping to springboard his name in the title picture with a dominant performance over Whittaker.
Fighter Profiles
A twelve-year veteran of the UFC, Robert Whittaker will be having his 22nd fight in the UFC, which is a record for Australian & New Zealand fighters. After coming through the local ranks competing predominantly in the defunct Cage Fighting Championships. He earned his UFC contract after winning The Ultimate Fighter: Australia vs UK season. Following the season finale, Whittaker commenced his UFC career with a mixed 2-2 record before moving up to the middleweight ranks. There he made his mark, claiming the interim UFC title with victory over Yoel Romero before being promoted to undisputed champion.
It will be an uphill challenge for the 33-year-old Whittaker to keep his name in title contention, having not only twice lost to local New Zealand rival Israel Adesanya but also to the current champion Dricus Du Plessis, however, argument can also be made on the other side with victories against other top contenders in that time including Darren Till, Jared Cannonier, Kelvin Gastelum, Marvin Vettori and most recently Paulo Costa.
Ikram Aliskerov was originally scheduled to fight last weekend against Antonio Trócoli though understandably decided to pass on that for the opportunity against the ranked Whittaker. He comes into the fight on a seven-fight winning streak with the most recent outing being a first-round stoppage against Warlley Alves.
Fight Analysis
Both fighters stand at an identical 6 feet (182 cm). Aliskerov has the advantage in reach with a UFC measurement of 76″ compared to Whittaker’s 73.5″, though Whittaker has the advantage with legs, 43″ to 40″.
With a background in Russian Sambo where he won European and World titles, it will be no surprise that Aliskerov’s strength lies in his wrestling and grappling. In his two UFC fights though, Aliskerov has finished both UFC opponents with strikes in the first round, the most recent being against orthodox Warlley Alves.
Whittaker is predominantly orthodox but has been known to utilise the Southpaw stance. He has seen it all in his 15-year professional career and brings a well-rounded game securing 9 KO/TKO’s wins, 5 submissions victories and 11 decisions over that span. The longer the fight drags on, the more you feel Whittaker may have the advantage as he pushes Aliskerov into deeper waters.
Historical Context
With Alex Volkanovski’s recent featherweight title loss, and Steve Erceg coming up short in his flyweight challenge, Whittaker will be hoping to light the flame to get in a position to get a UFC title belt back down under. There are challenges in his way though with current champion Dricus Du Plessis previously commenting that a win for Whittaker against Khamzat would not have been enough for Whittaker to warrant another title challenge. Against the unheralded Aliskerov, that’s even less likely.
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On the other hand, should Adesanya reclaim the title, will the UFC want to see a third fight between Whittaker and Adesanya considering Whittaker is 0-2. Though not common, it has happened, most recently back in 2022, Max Holloway was given a third shot at Alex Volkanovski after going down in the first two bouts.
The other thing going for a trilogy is the Australian and New Zealand fight fans who would be craving another showdown between their two favourites. The locals were forced to miss out on the second fight due to covid restrictions at the time, so can see a trilogy fight in either Australia or New Zealand being an attractive proposition for UFC officials.
It’s all to fight for though as a loss to Whittaker and a win for Adesanya would put any talk of a trilogy fight well out the window.
Conclusion
The bout headlines the UFC Fight Night card taking place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this Sunday morning (AEST).
The main card will commence at 5am and will also feather a heavyweight class between the ranked Sergei Pavloich and Alexander Volkov, both from Russia while Kelvin Gastelum will be looking to bounce back in the welterweight ranks when he clashes with Daniel Rodriguez.
Catch the action live on ESPN 1 and UFC Fight Pass.
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Fight Card:
Main Card:
- Robert Whittaker vs. Ikram Aliskerov
- Sergei Pavlovich vs. Alexander Volkov
- Kelvin Gastelum vs. Daniel Rodriguez
- Shara Magomedov vs. Antonio Trócoli
- Johnny Walker vs. Volkan Oezdemir
Preliminary Card:
- Nasrat Haqparast vs. Jared Gordon
- Muhammad Naimov vs. Felipe Lima
- Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Nicolas Dalby
- Kang Kyung-ho vs. Muin Gafurov
- Magomed Gadzhiyasulov vs. Brendson Ribeiro
- Long Xiao vs. Lee Chang-ho
