The middleweight title is on the line in the main event of UFC 271 this weekend, as champion Israel Adesanya defends the belt against rival Robert Whittaker.
Nigerian-born New Zealander Adesanya took the gold from Whittaker in October 2019, stopping the Australian in the second round at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium.
The seismic event was attended by more fans than any other card in UFC history – over 57,000 – and the highly-awaited rematch follows this Saturday, when Whittaker looks to regain the title from Adesanya in Houston.
Since losing the belt to the “Last Stylebender”, Whittaker has won three in a row against elite competition, while Adesanya has successfully defended the title three times – but also suffered his first professional defeat in failing to win the light heavyweight gold last year.
Here’s all you need to know about UFC 271.
When is it?
UFC 271 takes place on Saturday 12 February at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
What time does it start?
The early prelims are scheduled to begin at 11pm GMT (3pm PT, 5pm CT, 6pm ET), with the prelims following at 1am GMT (5pm PT, 7pm CT, 8pm ET) on Sunday morning. The main card then begins at 3am GMT (7m PT, 9pm CT, 10pm ET.
How can I watch it?
The card will air live on BT Sport in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights.
In the US, ESPN+ will stream the action live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass.
Full card
Main card
Israel Adesanya (C) vs Robert Whittaker 2 (middleweight title)
Kyler Phillips vs Marcelo Rojo (bantamweight)
Vinc Pichel vs Mark Madsen (lightweight)
Roxanne Modafferi vs Casey O’Neill (women’s flyweight)
Carlos Ulberg vs Fabio Cherant (light heavyweight)
Ed Herman vs Maxim Grishin (light heavyweight)
Mana Martinez vs Ronnie Lawrence (bantamweight)
Alexander Hernandez vs Renato Moicano (lightweight)
AJ Dobson vs Jacob Malkoun (middleweight)
Douglas Silva de Andrade vs Sergey Morozov (bantamweight)
Orion Cosce vs Blood Diamond (welterweight)
