Before Sunday’s Big Game, UFC 271: Adesanya vs. Whittaker 2 will feature a stacked card of 15 bouts inside of the Octagon. This Valentine’s Day weekend, the mixed martial arts promotion PPV event will be headlined by a UFC Middleweight Championship bout between “The Last Stylebender” Israel Adesanya (C) vs. Robert “The Reaper” Whittaker. Adesanya won by knockout when the pair faced off for the first time at UFC 243, back in October 2019, which is available to watch in full on UFC’s YouTube page.
At the young age of 32, Adesanya is the promotion’s second-biggest draw behind Connor McGregor, and one of the most decorated fighters in the UFC with some considering him as one of the best strikers in mixed martial arts. With a record of 21-1, he’s the reigning UFC Middleweight champion, a former kickboxing champion, 2018 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year, and 2019 Male Fighter of the Year. At UFC 243, which took place in front of 57,000 fans in Australia, The Last Stylebender defeated Whitaker by 2nd round KO to unify both Middleweight titles to become the undisputed champion. He’s unbeaten as a middleweight, and this rematch will be his 4th title defense. If he can knockout Whittaker again then he’ll increase his KO total to 16 wins.
Whittaker will be looking to take his title back when he steps into the Octagon against Adesanya. As the first Australian UFC champion, Whittaker is the #1 ranked Middleweight, 2017 Fighter of the Year, and is currently on a 3-fight win streak. During the streak, he’s defeated Darren Till, Kelvin Gastelum, and Jared Cannonier, with each fight decided by a unanimous decision by the judges. At 23-5, if this bout doesn’t go to another judge’s decision, this would be the 15th win by knockout or submission in The Reaper’s career.
With a stacked card, the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas will be the home to all of the hard-hitting combat action inside of the Octagon. Space City will be packed with fans in attendance; however, cord cutters can find out how to watch UFC 271 below.
When to Watch
Early prelims begin on Saturday, February 12, at 6:00 p.m. ET, prelims begin at 8 p.m. ET, with the main card beginning at 10 p.m. ET.
Where to Watch
You can watch all of Saturday’s fights on ESPN+. The early prelims will also air on UFC Fight Pass, while the prelims will air on ESPN.
The main card is a pay-per-view event that existing ESPN+ subscribers can purchase for $74.99, and new subscribers can save 30% by purchasing UFC 70 and signing up to the ESPN+ Annual Plan for $99.98. Click here to sign up.
What’s the Schedule?
Early Prelim — Beginning at 6 p.m. ET
- Mana Martinez (9-2) vs. Ronnie Lawrence (7-1) [Bantamweight]
- Alexander Hernandez (13-4) vs. Renato Moicano (15-4-1) [Lightweight]
- Carlos Ulberg (5-1) vs. Fabio Cherant (7-3) [Light Heavyweight]
- A.J. Dobson (1-0) vs. Jacob Malkoun (5-1) [Middleweight]
- Douglas Silva de Andrade (27-4; 1NC) vs. Sergey Morozov (17-4) [Bantamweight]
- Jeremiah Wells (9-2; 1NC) vs. Mike Diamond (Debut) [Welterweight]
Prelims — Beginning at 8 p.m. ET
- Andrei Arlovski (32-20; 2NC) vs. Jared Vanderaa (12-6) [Heavyweight]
- #12 Roxanne Modafferi (25-20) vs. #15 Casey O’Neill (8-0) [Women’s Flyweight]
- #4 Alex Perez (24-6) vs. #9 Matt Schnell (15-5) [Flyweight]
- William Knight (10-2) vs. Maxim Grishin (31-9-2) [Light Heavyweight]
Main Card— Beginning at 10 p.m. ET
- Israel Adesanya (c) (21-1) vs. #1 Robert Whittaker (24-5) [Middleweight]
- #3 Derrick Lewis (25-8; 1NC) vs. #11 Tai Tuivasa (13-3) [Heavyweight]
- #3 Jared Cannonier (14-5) vs. #4 Derek Brunson (23-7) [Middleweight]
- Kyler Phillips (9-2) vs. Marcelo Rojo (16-8) [Bantamweight]
- Bobby Green (27-12-1) vs. Nasrat Haqparast (13-4) [Lightweight]
Catch all of the combat action live from the Octagon and more by subscribing to an ESPN+ Annual plan and get UFC 271 for $99.98.