Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has his eyes on a mid-2025 return after repairing the damage he sustained at the hands of Khamzat Chimaev last month.
Following two strong appearances in 2024 that saw him outpoint Paulo Costa and knock out the highly touted Ikram Aliskerov, Whittaker hoped to make it three on the bounce at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi.
But his pursuit of a rematch with current titleholder Dricus Du Plessis came to an emphatic halt at the hands of Chimaev, who added "The Reaper" to the list of victims on his undefeated record.
And the result was up there with the Chechen star's most vicious in the UFC to date, as he dragged Whittaker down before displacing his front teeth with a brutal face crank in the very first round.