Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweights Robert Whittaker and Brad Tavares slugged it out last night (May 9, 2015) at UFC Fight Night 65 inside Adelaide Entertainment Centre in Adelaide, Australia.
Tavares has proven himself to be one of the more consistent middleweights on the roster. Still, to maintain his position inside the Top 15, victory in this match up was vital for the Hawaiian.
On the other hand, Whittaker had a major opportunity in this bout to announce himself as a contender in his new division. Paired off with a fellow striker, this was an important bout for Whittaker as well.
He definitely made the most of it.
To watch full fight video highlights of Robert Whittaker vs. Brad Tavares click here.
Tavares looked to find his range with some low kicks to start the bout. Meanwhile, Whittaker looked to establish his jab, dipping down to the body as well. Then, Whittaker flicked up a front kick, stepped forward with a level change as the kick came down, and uncoiled into a brutal left hook.
Tavares' knees buckled immediately.
From there, Whittaker never gave his opponent a chance to recover. He slammed another left hook Tavares' jaw as the Hawaiian attempted to regain his footing, sending him to the mat. Before Tavares could attempt to work a guard or defend himself, Whittaker followed him to the mat with a series of accurate punches and put him out.
This was a spectacular win for the Australian. Against a proven veteran, Whittaker looked incredibly crisp on his feet. In just about a minute, Whittaker blew the No. 15-ranked middleweight contender out of the water in violent fashion.
Correction, formerly No. 15-ranked middleweight contender.
Off the strength of this win, Whittaker deserves a position in the rankings and a match up with another top fighter. Clearly, his move to middleweight was a smart decision, as Whittaker was nowhere near this level in the welterweight division.
There's not a lot to take from this fight for Tavares. He's a well-rounded and conditioned fighter, which will lead him to a decent amount of wins, but his lack of finishing ability really hurts him. Tavares was the bigger and stronger man here, but without a real knockout threat behind most of his shots, those traits weren't all that useful.
Whereas Tavares' speed advantage was quite obvious.
In short, Tavares needs to switch up something in his game or training camp in order to get back into the top-tier of the division. He's not a bad fighter by any means, but he needs to evolve to stay competitive with the best middleweights in the world.
At UFC Fight Night 65, Robert Whittaker knocked out his opponent in just 45 seconds. Is the Aussie a new contender in the middleweight division?
For complete UFC Fight Night 65 "Miocic vs Hunt" fight results and play-by-play click HERE!