UFC on ABC: Robert Whittaker vs. Ikram Aliskerov – Date, UK start time, fight card and how to follow Khamzat Chimaev replacement
Robert Whittaker will headline the UFC’s final event tonight against Ikram Aliskerov in Saudi Arabia.
Whittaker was originally supposed to face Khamzat Chimaev, but the Russian had to pull out of the fight after falling “violently ill.”
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This meant that former middleweight champion Whittaker had to quickly find a new opponent and Alikserov rose to the challenge.
The two men will face off in the Middle East, with the winner increasing their chances of winning the title against the current titleholder, Dricus Du Plessis.
Both have now managed to move up in weight for the fight with Whittaker at 186 pounds and Aliskerov at 184 pounds.
Whittaker vs Aliskerov: start date and time
This event will take place on Saturday June 22.
It will be held at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The main card is set to kick off around 5pm UK time, before the main event cage rides begin at 8pm.
The action will be shown live on TNT Sports in the UK. More details on how you can sign up for Discovery+ are here.
talkSPORT.com will also keep you up to date with all the latest news and reactions.
Whittaker vs Aliskerov: fight card
Subject to change
Main map
- MAIN EVENT: Robert Whittaker vs. Ikram Aliskerov
- Sergei Pavlovich versus Alexander Volkov
- Kelvin Gastelum vs. Daniel Rodriguez
- Shara Magomedov vs. Antonio Trocoli
- Johnny Walker vs. Volkan Oezdemir
Preliminary map
- Nasrat Haqparast vs. Jared Gordon
- Muhammad Naimov vs. Felipe Lima
- Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Nicolas Dalby
- Kyung Ho Kang vs. Muin Gafurov
- Magomed Gadzhiyasulov vs. Brendson Ribeiro
- Xiao Long vs. Lee Chang-ho
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Whittaker vs. Aliskerov: What was said?
Speaking to talkSPORT MMA, Whittaker admitted he was concerned he trained for three months for nothing following Chimaev’s withdrawal.
He said: “It was an emotional few hours when my team was working on what was happening.
“It’s good to have another opponent. I am blessed. I’m grateful to the UFC and my team for making sure the fight happened. And Ikram for accepting the fight.
“My coach came to me and said, ‘Buddy, Chimaev is out. It’s crazy. We will work things out with the UFC and arrange a new opponent. Hold on,” he continued.
“They understand that I want to fight. I worked so much. I am slim and fit. I’m already here in Dubai. I’m fighting someone, right?
“Ikram’s name appeared. It wasn’t really a debate. Just give me one guy, and I’ll get in there and work.
“Obviously, it’s painful because I developed a very specific game plan for Chimaev. Three months for Chimaev, who is a pretty unique fighter.
“But that’s how it is. Sometimes you have to roll with the punches.”
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