Who won the fight between Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker (12th February 2022)?

Robert Whittaker (left) & Israel Adesanya (right) [Image Credits- @ufc on Twitter]

UFC 271 offered Robert Whittaker the perfect opportunity to reclaim his long-lost UFC middleweight title in a highly anticipated rematch against Israel Adesanya. However, his quest for vindication ended in heartbreak, as he was bested by the Kiwi.

The reigning UFC middleweight champion managed to outperform Whittaker over the course of five rounds to record a unanimous decision victory. The action unfolded at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

The fight, this time around, was much closer than their first encounter. 'The Reaper' himself admitted that he felt he had done enough to walk away with the win. However, the judges saw it differently.

The @StyleBender reigns supreme 👑 #UFC271 https://t.co/NggdkkWrjj

Adesanya and Whittaker previously locked horns at UFC 243 way back in October 2019. 'The Last Stylebender' went into the fight as the interim middleweight champion after out-classing Kelvin Gastelum via unanimous decision at UFC 236 in April 2019.

Watch their first showdown below:

'The Last Stylebender' stopped Robert Whittaker in the second round to unify the middleweight titles and emerge as the freshly minted middleweight champion. Adesanya has since been on a tear in the 185-lbs division.

With his most recent performance against 'The Reaper' it seems like his reign is not going to end anytime soon.

UFC 271: Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker 2 main card results

Israel Adesanya def. Robert Whittaker via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46)

Tai Tuivasa def. Derrick Lewis via KO (1:40 of Round 2)

Jared Cannonier def. Derek Brunson via TKO (4:29 of Round 2)

Renato Moicano def. Alexander Hernandez via submission (rear-naked choke) (1:23 of Round 2)

Bobby Green def. Nasrat Haqparast via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

UFC 271: Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker 2 preliminary card results

Andrei Arlovski def. Jared Vanderaa via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

Casey O’Neill def. Roxanne Modafferi via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

Kyler Phillips def. Marcelo Rojo via submission (triangle armbar) (1:48 of Round 3)

Carlos Ulberg def. Fabio Cherant via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

UFC 271: Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker 2 early preliminary card results

Ronnie Lawrence def. Mana Martinez via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-28)

Jacob Malkoun def. AJ Dobson via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Douglas Silva de Andrade def. Sergey Morozov via sub (rear-naked choke) (3:24 of Round 2)

Jeremiah Wells def. Blood Diamond via sub (rear-naked choke) (4:38 of Round 1)

Maxim Grishin def. William Knight via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)