A preview of Robert Whittaker vs. Ikram Aliskerov: A look at how their matchup could play out
Robert Whittaker vs. Ikram Aliskerov is the new main event for UFC Saudi Arabia, replacing the Australian's original matchup with Khamzat Chimaev. The bout bears significance to both men. However, Whittaker stands to lose far more than Aliskerov if he tastes defeat due to their disparity in rank.
Whittaker is currently the #3 ranked middleweight in the UFC, while Aliskerov is unranked. A loss to a fighter who is nowhere in the top 15 would be disastrous, but a win would earn him respect as he'd have risked his spot against a short-notice foe he hasn't prepared for, which the UFC seems to appreciate.
Meanwhile, Aliskerov stands to gain the most, as a win over Whittaker would almost certainly catapult him into the top 10. Given his unranked status, a loss to someone in the top three wouldn't be all that damaging. But, who will emerge victorious this Saturday?
Robert Whittaker: Fight Profile
There is no question Robert Whittaker's skill as a fighter. He is a former UFC middleweight champion and has beaten some of the most notable names at 185 pounds, having only ever lost to fellow champions in the division. Despite being his well-rounded skill-set, 'The Reaper' is mainly a striker.
A black belt in Gōjū-ryū, Whittaker's karate background factors into his stance. He stands somewhat wide, bouncing back and forth on the balls of his feet, allowing him to blitz forward with incredible speed. Despite his ability to cover distance quickly, Whittaker is not an out-fighter.
In fact, out-fighting seems to be a weak point for 'The Reaper,' as it causes him to lunge from too far out, potentially running himself into counters. For this reason, he usually operates from mid-range, where he can stutter-step into boxing combinations, which have proven effective against most opponents.
Check out Robert Whittaker's striking:
However, when forced to fight from the outside, Whittaker either relies on his speed to lunge into range, catching his foe with looping hooks, or he leaps in with sidekicks to the lead knee. The latter, he uses against opponents who step in with a jab, snapping their knee back, intercepting them since legs are longer than arms.
His signature move, though, is his jab-right cross combination, which leads into a right high kick. First, he establishes the threat of his jab-right cross by landing it. The point is to dupe his opponent into slipping to the outside of his right cross, after which he intercepts the slip with a right high kick.
A variation of this consists of him deliberately missing his right cross and turning his palm inward to push his foe's head into the path of the kick. Alternatively, he uses the right cross to draw out a counter, ducking under it before rising with a left hook on his opponent's open side.
Despite his exceptional striking skill and speed, Whittaker lacks in power, having not knocked anyone out since 2017. As a wrestler, he is skilled but less driven. Whittaker mixes things up with takedowns on occasion, often using his jab as a setup.
He sticks his jab to his opponent's chest, shoving them forward while using his alternate hand to pick up their leg to off-balance them, before driving forward to complete the takedown. A different takedown in Whittaker's arsenal is his blast-double, which benefits from his tremendous speed.
Check out Robert Whittaker's takedown defense:
However, most of the Australian's wrestling is defensive. He has a quick sprawl, digging for underhooks the moment a takedown is attempted. But it isn't enough to merely defend a takedown. One must create separation from the opposing wrestler, which Whittaker does by framing against them.
Whenever he is taken down, Whittaker is quick to initiate scrambles and is difficult to hold down, as Yoel Romero can attest. In fact, the only fighter who has managed to control 'The Reaper' on the mat has been Dricus du Plessis. Despite his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, he does not pursue submissions at all.
Ikram Aliskerov: Fighter Profile
Ikram Aliskerov has no shortage of credentials when it comes to his Combat Sambo accolades. He is as good as it gets, and it shoes. However, the obsession with his grappling makes it easy to forget that he is quite the striker, possessing thunderous power and a tight grasp on certain fundamentals.
He is an active jabber, using it to gauge his distance. It's a quick punch that's easy to score with. However, it does invite counters. To avoid being caught as he steps in, Aliskerov moves laterally after jabbing, taking a diagonal step to either his left or right side, all while rolling his lead shoulder to deflect incoming punches.
While this works against most counters, it failed to stop Khamzat Chimaev from knocking him out with an inside uppercut. Moreover, his overreliance on the jab means that he's vulnerable to low kicks, as a well-executed jab requires a fighter to step in with the punch, extending their stance and exposing their lead leg.
Check out Ikram Aliskerov's striking:
Despite the threat of his wrestling, Aliskerov doesn't usually catch kicks and convert them into takedowns. He merely takes the kicks. Still, his striking remains effective, particularly due to his lateral step, which realigns his rear-hand with his opponent's chin, allowing him to land his right hand after his jab.
Furthermore, he's in a better position to slip or circle to the outside of his foe's linear strikes. Unfortunately, there isn't much variety to his strikes. However, he does throw round kicks to the head and the occasional flying knee, as he has no fear of having his leg caught due to his stellar takedown defense.
His flying knee is usually deployed as a counter to intercept his opponent's level change whenever they try ducking under his jab. Though he sometimes uses it against a foe who he has trapped against the fence due to their limited space. However, the true danger that Aliskerov poses is with his wrestling.
He doesn't usually shoot for traditional blast double-legs or even single-legs. Instead, Aliskerov specializes in the clinch, where he shows shades of both judo and wrestling. Near the fence, he takes a page from the book of UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.
Aliskerov hits his opponent with knees to the thigh and body, intent on coaxing his opponent into throwing knees of their own. Once they oblige, he waits for the incoming knee, then hooks his foot around his foe's only standing leg, tripping them to the mat.
Check out Ikram Aliskerov's wrestling:
Another clinch-based takedown he uses stems from the bodylock. Aliskerov secures double underhooks and draws upon his physical strength to lift his opponent off the mat, raising their hips above his own, before using his hips to block theirs, turning his upper-body away as he lifts and slams his foe.
Alternatively, he'll lift his opponent and slide his knee up the back of their thigh, kicking their leg up to off-balance them and get the slam. He also executes traditional double-leg takedowns along the fence, drawing his opponent's hands high with punches, before dropping under their high guard with a double-leg.
Once the fight is on the mat, he is positionally dominant, favoring the half-guard for its supreme control. Furthermore, it allows him to tease the kimura to advance position. However, Aliskerov does not obsess over submissions, often raising his hips to drive them into punches for ground-and-pound.
Defensively, he initiate scrambles and is incredibly difficult to takedown, remaining the only opponent that Chimaev could not take down.
The Verdict
The fight is closer than many might expect. Robert Whittaker is the better striker, but he lacks the power to hurt Ikram Aliskerov. While the Dagestani is vulnerable to low kicks, which Whittaker will pick up on, the Australian can be outmuscled in the clinch if Aliskerov opts to use his judo.
However, due to his edge in experience, superior striking, and strong defensive wrestling, Whittaker should win via decision.