''UFC 271: Adesanya vs. Whittaker 2'' was a

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

event produced by the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

that took place on February 12, 2022 at the

Toyota Center Toyota Center is an indoor arena located in Houston, Texas, United States. It is named after the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota. The arena is home to the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA), and it was once th ...

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, United States.

Background

UFC Middleweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight class ...

rematch between then champion

Israel Adesanya Israel Mobolaji Temitayo Odunayo Oluwafemi Owolabi Adesanya (born 22 July 1989) is a Nigerian-New Zealand professional mixed martial artist, former kickboxer and boxer. As a mixed martial artist, he currently competes in the Middleweight di ...

and former champion Robert Whittaker (also The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes welterweight winner) served as the event's headliner. The pairing met previously in October 2019 at

UFC 243 ''UFC 243: Whittaker vs. Adesanya'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 6, 2019, at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. Background The event was the fourth th ...

, when then interim champion Adesanya knocked out Whittaker in the second round to unify the middleweight title. A flyweight bout between former UFC Flyweight Championship challenger Alex Perez and Matt Schnell was expected to take place at this event. They were previously scheduled to meet on four occasions (

UFC 262 ''UFC 262: Oliveira vs. Chandler'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on May 15, 2021 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, United States. Background A UFC Lightweight Championship ...

, UFC on ESPN: Barboza vs. Chikadze, UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Till and UFC 269), but the contest was cancelled each time due to different reasons. At the weigh-ins, Perez came in at 128 pounds and did not attempt to try again, resulting in Matt Schnell refusing to take the catchweight bout and the bout being scrapped. A potential middleweight title eliminator bout between Jared Cannonier and Derek Brunson was scheduled for

UFC 270 ''UFC 270: Ngannou vs. Gane'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 22, 2022, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Background A UFC Heavyweight Championship title unificat ...

. However, the pairing was moved to this event due to undisclosed reasons. 2016 Olympic silver medalist in wrestling Mark Madsen and Vinc Pichel were expected to meet in a lightweight bout. However, they were pushed back to UFC 273 for unknown reasons. A welterweight between Orion Cosce and Mike Mathetha was scheduled for the event. However, Cosce was pulled from the bout due to undisclosed reasons and replaced by Jeremiah Wells. A light heavyweight bout between Maxim Grishin and Ed Herman was scheduled for this event. However in late January, Herman withdrew for unknown reasons and was replaced by William Knight. At the weigh-ins, Knight weighed in at 218 pounds, 12 pounds over the light heavyweight non-title fight limit, marking the biggest weight miss in UFC history. As a result, the bout was shifted to heavyweight and Knight was fined 40% of his purse, which went to Grishin.

Results

Bonus awards

The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses. * Fight of the Night: Douglas Silva de Andrade vs. Sergey Morozov * Performance of the Night: Tai Tuivasa and Jared Cannonier

References

{{2022 in mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship flagship events 2022 in mixed martial arts February 2022 sports events in the United States Mixed martial arts events in Houston Sports competitions in Houston 2022 in sports in Texas

Background

Results

Bonus awards

See also

References