Whittaker vs. Adesanya unification fight set for UFC 243
The UFC will be crowning an undisputed middleweight champion this October.
Middleweight champion Robert Whittaker vs. interim middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in a unification fight is officially set for UFC 243. The pay-per-view is taking place on Saturday, October 5, but the location for it has yet to be announced.
While speaking with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Whittaker said he’s been told that UFC 243 will be held in either Melbourne, Australia or Las Vegas, Nevada. At today’s UFC summer press conference, Dana White said the UFC has options and the location will be confirmed soon. When asked if it was guaranteed to be in Australia, White reiterated that they have different options and said Australia is one of them.
Whittaker was scheduled to defend his title against Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 234 in Melbourne this February, but he had to pull out of the fight due to injury. Adesanya defeated Anderson Silva in what became the new main event of that show.
Adesanya and Gastelum then faced off for the interim middleweight title at UFC 236 in April, with Adesanya winning by unanimous decision.
Whittaker has only fought twice since the summer of 2017. He defeated Yoel Romero in both of those bouts.
Whittaker has a 20-4 record, while Adesanya is 17-0.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.