Taking place at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne Australia, is the middleweight title fight between Robert Whitaker and Kelvin Gastellum. These fighters most recently opposed each other on coaches of Season 28 of The Ultimate Fighter. This looks set to be a close-run match – hometown favourite Whitaker will be pressed through by highly experienced Gastelum. Both of these fighters seem to have been around for a long time, but are still just aged 28 and 27 respectively, and are still both looking to cement their positions. The winner of this fight is likely to face whoever is victorious in the co-main event (see below).
The co-main event of the evening is another middleweight bout, this time featuring kickboxing sensation Israel Adesanya against the legendary Anderson Silva. Despite some lengthy layoffs in recent years for Silva his talent is undeniable, and with both fighters being ranked within the top 10 of the division, it makes for an interesting matchup. Adesanya has built up an impressive 15-0 record, with four of those wins within a year of joining the UFC. Some have questioned Silva’s motivation for taking the fight, but UFC president has told Silva he would again get a title shot if he were to be victorious against Adesanya.
Rest of fight card
Rani Yahya vs. Ricky Simon 135 lbs – Bantamweight
Montana De La Rosa vs. Nadia Kassem 125 lbs – Flyweight
Jim Crute vs. Sam Alvey 205 lbs – Light heavyweight
Dong Hyun Ma vs. Devonte Smith 155 lbs – Lightweight
Austin Arnett vs. Shane Young 145 lbs – Featherweight
Kai Kara-France vs. Raulian Paiva 125 lbs – Flyweight
Teruto Ishihara vs. Kyung Ho Kang 135 lbs – Bantamweight
Marcos Rosa Mariano vs. Lando Vannata 155 lbs – Lightweight
Callan Potter vs. Jalin Turner 155 lbs – Lightweight
Wuliji Buren vs. Jonathan Martinez 135 lbs – Bantamweight
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