5 adjustments Robert Whittaker needs to make to defeat Israel Adesanya at UFC 271

#4. Robert Whittaker needs to be willing to engage in Israel Adesanya’s type of fight

Robert Whittaker needs to embrace a point-fighting style in order to engage with Israel Adesanya

Since his initial loss to Israel Adesanya in October 2019, we’ve seen Robert Whittaker in action on three occasions, beating Darren Till, Jared Cannonier and Kelvin Gastelum.

All three bouts saw Whittaker win pretty clear-cut decisions, but they were all notable for showcasing a different side to ‘The Reaper’ than we’d seen before.

Once a more straight-ahead striker, Whittaker displayed more of a point-fighting style in those bouts, particularly in his clash with Till in July 2020. He showed more patience, footwork and movement than we’d seen from him before and was largely able to pick a dangerous foe apart.

Can Whittaker defeat a striker as precise as Adesanya in that kind of point-fighting bout? In all honesty, it’s unlikely, but the fact that he now seems capable of at least engaging in that style should give him a better shot at winning.

If ‘The Reaper’ is willing to fight in that style, he could well take Adesanya by surprise. It may throw the Nigerian-born New Zealander off his game, leaving him open to the kind of knockout shot that everyone knows Whittaker can produce.

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#3. Robert Whittaker cannot afford to attempt to rush Israel Adesanya

Robert Whittaker made the error of attempting to rush in against Israel Adesanya in their first meeting

The biggest mistake that Robert Whittaker made in his first meeting with Israel Adesanya was the fact that he attempted to force the fight. By doing that, he found himself rushing at ‘The Last Stylebender’ more than once.

Simply put, no fighter in the middleweight division can afford to rush in against Adesanya. He is just too accurate with his counterstrikes and too quick, and so an oncoming fighter in a hurry becomes like a walking target for him.

The likely explanation is that Whittaker was attempting to trigger some action in the fight, as it felt like Adesanya was willing to sit back and let the then-champion come to him. Basically, ‘The Reaper’ walked directly into a trap.

This time around, Whittaker needs to show far more patience if he wants to win. Sure, this kind of gameplan may well trigger some boos from a notoriously hard-to-please Texan crowd. However, at the end of the day, winning is more important than impressing the audience.

If ‘The Reaper’ isn’t willing to rush in, then the fight may resemble a staring contest for parts. That might play into his hands. If Adesanya ends up being the one to attempt to force the action, then he might make the first mistake, allowing Whittaker to capitalize.