UFC 271: Adesanya v Whittaker - an MMA rivalry born down under

Champion versus champion, Australia against New Zealand and in front of 57,000 fans in Melbourne.

When Australia's Robert Whittaker made the walk to the octagon to defend his middleweight title in front of a buoyant home crowd at UFC 243 in 2019, it represented the highest point of his career.

Just minutes later he would experience the lowest.

After controlling key moments of the fight New Zealand's interim champion Israel Adesanya landed a knockout victory in round two to unify the division, crushing the spirit of Whittaker and his fans inside the Marvel Stadium.

Success helped Nigeria-born Adesanya, 32, become one of the UFC's most marketable stars, while Whittaker, 31, lost his desire to fight, going to what he describes as a «dark place»external-link following the defeat.

Now, following a three-fight win streak, New Zealand-born Whittaker has earned his chance at redemption as he looks to reclaim the same title he lost to Adesanya when the pair meet at UFC 271 in Houston, Texas, on Saturday.

The fierce competition between Australia and New Zealand, coupled with Melbourne as the venue, provided the perfect backdrop for that first contest between Adesanya and Whittaker.

In a part of the world where sports like Australian rules football, rugby and cricket reign supreme, MMA found itself in the spotlight.

Although the groundwork of their rivalry was laid down under, it has gone on to flourish on a global scale, with the pair becoming the two best middleweights in the world.

And there is much more respect between the pair going into the second fight.

«It's no secret that we don't like each other,» said Adesanya in the pre-fight news conferenceexternal-link.

«But I'm glad he pulled himself out of that dark place — that he's feeling