It appears that the UFC has locked in a date for a highly anticipated matchup in the middleweight division. Next month, former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker (23-6) was set to return and take on “The Italian Dream” Marvin Vettori (18-4-1).
However, Whittaker sustained an injury and was forced out of the UFC 275 contest. It would’ve been a quick turnaround for Whittaker, but given the short proximity of the UFC 275 location, he wanted in on the card. However, it wasn’t meant to be.
Marvin Vettori wanted to stay on the card because he is itching to fight. However, the promotion wanted to keep the fight together with Robert Whittaker. Whittaker is close to being fully healthy and the UFC seems to have found a new date for the fight.
It appears that Whittaker and Vettori will fight on the promotion’s first ever card in Paris. The UFC is planning on having a Fight Night in Paris on September 3rd. French heavyweight and former interim champion Ciryl Gane is expected to headline the card against Tai Tuivasa.
UFC Fight Night Paris
Overnight, Vettori took to Twitter and said that he was fighting Whittaker in Paris. Whittaker followed up by tweeting out himself that he would be fighting at UFC Paris which means an agreement is likely in place for the fight.
Vettori will be looking for his second straight win when he fights Whittaker in September. Last October, Vettori won a decision over Paulo Costa. That win over Costa came on the heels of his title loss to Israel Adesanya.
Speaking of title losses to Israel Adesanya, that is what Whittaker is coming off of. Whittaker had his rematch with the champion back at UFC 271 in February. It was a very competitive fight, but the judges gave the fight to Adesanya.
Adesanya is still the only man to defeat Whittaker at 185 pounds. Outside of Adesanya, Whittaker is 11-0 in the UFC’s middleweight division. Marvin Vettori will try to be the first man outside the champion to beat Bobby Knuckles at middleweight.
Both men are in an interesting spot considering they are a combined 0-4 against the champion. However, they are still two of the very best in the world and they will want another shot at Adesanya. Their path to him starts in September when the UFC lands in Paris.