{"id":43001,"date":"2026-02-12T12:24:27","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T17:24:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/12\/robert-whittakers-861-day-quest-to-reclaim-ufc-title-ends-in-heartbreaking-defeat\/"},"modified":"2026-02-12T12:24:27","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T17:24:27","slug":"robert-whittakers-861-day-quest-to-reclaim-ufc-title-ends-in-heartbreaking-defeat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/12\/robert-whittakers-861-day-quest-to-reclaim-ufc-title-ends-in-heartbreaking-defeat\/","title":{"rendered":"Robert Whittaker\u2019s 861-Day Quest to Reclaim UFC Title Ends in Heartbreaking Defeat"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_74 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/12\/robert-whittakers-861-day-quest-to-reclaim-ufc-title-ends-in-heartbreaking-defeat\/#Robert_Whittaker_Falls_Short_Against_Israel_Adesanya_in_Their_UFC_271_Rematch\" >Robert Whittaker Falls Short Against Israel Adesanya in Their UFC 271 Rematch<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/12\/robert-whittakers-861-day-quest-to-reclaim-ufc-title-ends-in-heartbreaking-defeat\/#Joe_Rogan_Absent_from_UFC_271_Amid_Last-Minute_Changes\" >Joe Rogan Absent from UFC 271 Amid Last-Minute Changes<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>Four years ago today, Israel Adesanya once again demonstrated his dominance over one of the greatest fighters in UFC history. Revered as one of the sport\u2019s top competitors, Adesanya\u2019s lengthy tenure as middleweight champion has cemented his status alongside legends like Anderson Silva.<\/p>\n<p>A notable achievement shared by both Adesanya and Silva is their unbeaten records in rematch scenarios inside the Octagon. Adesanya, in particular, has secured victory in two UFC rematches, with one memorable win occurring on this date in 2022.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Robert_Whittaker_Falls_Short_Against_Israel_Adesanya_in_Their_UFC_271_Rematch\"><\/span>Robert Whittaker Falls Short Against Israel Adesanya in Their UFC 271 Rematch<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>When fans think of Adesanya\u2019s rematch successes, many recall his 2024 knockout of Alex Pereira to reclaim the middleweight title. However, his initial UFC rematch presented a more challenging test. On February 12, 2022, at UFC 271 held in Houston\u2019s Toyota Center, Adesanya defended his middleweight crown for the fourth time. Having previously triumphed over fighters like Jared Cannonier, Tai Tuivasa, and Renato Moicano, he now faced longtime rival Robert Whittaker.<\/p>\n<p>Known as \u201cThe Last Stylebender,\u201d Adesanya aimed to reaffirm his superiority by defeating Whittaker once more, after unifying the belts against the Australian three years earlier. Their first encounter ended swiftly with Adesanya knocking Whittaker out in Melbourne, but this rematch unfolded into a grueling five-round war. Though Whittaker believed he had done enough to claim victory, the judges unanimously sided with Adesanya.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m happy to be at my best, but yeah, I\u2019m disappointed,\u201d Whittaker admitted post-fight. \u201cI thought I had done enough. I think it was tough at first, but after that I thought I won every round.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Joe_Rogan_Absent_from_UFC_271_Amid_Last-Minute_Changes\"><\/span>Joe Rogan Absent from UFC 271 Amid Last-Minute Changes<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>One notable absence from UFC 271 was color commentator Joe Rogan, who withdrew shortly before the event due to what was described as \u201cscheduling conflicts.\u201d His replacement, former champion Michael Bisping, stepped in on short notice. UFC president Dana White suggested that Rogan could have contributed significantly to the broadcast but seemed to dismiss the scheduling excuse.<\/p>\n<p>Many speculated that Rogan\u2019s absence stemmed from ongoing controversy surrounding him at the time, including backlash over COVID-19 misinformation and past racial slurs aired on his podcast. As a result, this fight card unfolded without one of the UFC\u2019s most recognizable voices.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Fan Take:<\/strong> This moment remains significant for fight fans because it highlights Israel Adesanya\u2019s ability to prevail under pressure against elite rivals, reinforcing his legacy in UFC history. Moreover, it underscores ongoing changes in the sport\u2019s presentation, as controversies surrounding key figures like Joe Rogan challenge traditions and open doors for new voices in MMA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Four years ago today, Israel Adesanya once again demonstrated his dominance over one of the greatest fighters in UFC history. Revered as one of the sport\u2019s top competitors, Adesanya\u2019s lengthy tenure as middleweight champion has cemented his status alongside legends like Anderson Silva. A notable achievement shared by both Adesanya and Silva is their unbeaten [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43002,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2443],"tags":[2444],"class_list":{"0":"post-43001","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fighting","8":"tag-fighting"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}