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UFC 271 Odds: Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker Odds, Prediction

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Adesanya is a -255 favourite on the MMA odds and Whittaker +185. The bout should begin around 11:45 p.m. ET.

Israel Adesanya UFC 271 Odds

UFC 271 - Robert Whittaker v Israel Adesanya

  • Israel Adesanya -360
  • Robert Whittaker +255

The 32-year-old Adesanya, from Nigeria but now living in New Zealand, is ranked as the No. 3 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC and is 21-1 in a professional career that began in 2012. He is widely regarded as one of the best strikers in MMA.

“The Last Stylebender” won the interim middleweight title at UFC 236 by beating Kelvin Gastelum by unanimous decision, knocking down Gastelum four times. Adesanya then faced Whittaker for the unified middleweight belt, knocked Whittaker down at the horn in Round 1 and won by second-round knockout (punches).  Adesanya defended the belt successfully against Yoel Romero (unanimous decision) and Paulo Costa (second-round TKO).

Adesanya then attempted to join the rare company of champions at two weight classes when he faced Jan Blachowicz for the light heavyweight belt at UFC 259 but lost by unanimous decision. Back to middleweight it was last time in the Octagon, a unanimous decision win over Marvin Vettori in June 2021.

Adesanya’s 10-fight UFC winning streak at middleweight is longest active streak in the division and second-longest ever behind Anderson Silva’s 13 in a row from 2012-16. Adesanya’s five victories in UFC middleweight title fights are second-most in history behind Silva’s 11. Finally, Adesanya’s 11 knockdowns landed in middleweight competition are third-most ever.

The 6-foot-4, 185-pounder averages 3.94 significant strikes per minutes with 50 per cent accuracy and absorbs 2.59 per minute with 62 per cent defence. Adesanya’s takedown average is literally zero and his defence is 80 per cent. Fifteen of his 21 wins are by KO/TKO and six by decision.

To win by KO/TKO/DQ on Saturday, he’s +145, by points/decision +155 and submission +1800. Adesanya will have a seven-inch reach advantage.

Robert Whittaker UFC 271 Odds

Whittaker (23-5), a 31-year-old Australian who was born in New Zealand, is the top-ranked middleweight and No. 15 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC.  He became the interim middleweight champion after beating Yoel Romero for the title at UFC 213 and Whittaker was promoted to undisputed champion after Canadian Georges St-Pierre vacated it in 2017.

Whittaker somewhat blamed that first loss to Adesanya (which was in Australia) on a sluggish training camp and lack of focus, reportedly considering retirement afterward. That is Whittaker’s only loss at middleweight in the UFC since moving to the division in November 2014.

“The Reaper” is 3-0 since, beating Darren Till, Jared Cannonier and Kelvin Gastelum by unanimous decision each. Whittaker’s eight fight night bonuses in middleweight fights are tied with Romero for second-most in divisional history.

The 6-foot, 185-pounder averages 4.68 significant strikes per minute with 41 per cent accuracy and absorbs 3.34 per minute with 61 per cent defence. His takedown average is 0.64 per 15 minutes with 34 per cent accuracy, and his takedown defence is 83 percent. Whittaker has nine wins each by KO/TKO and decision and five by submission.bet on

Expect Whittaker to try and wrestle more this time around because he’s not a match as a striker for Adesanya.  Whittaker’s favored method of victory is by points/decision at +460, followed by KO/TKO/DQ at +470 and submission +1200.

The over-under for the scheduled five-rounder is 4.5. We think it goes the distance this time, so bet over at -135.

UFC 271 Prediction: Adesanya vs. Whittaker

Adesanya by decision +155