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'Light heavyweight Bobby' triumphs in division debut
Adrian Warren, AAP • July 12th, 2026 1:57 pm
Robert Whittaker stepped up to light heavyweight and won at UFC 329 in Las Vegas | Photo: Michael Dodge/AAP
Australia's former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has made a stunning start to his light heavyweight career with a third-round stoppage of 12th ranked Nikita Krylov at UFC 329 in Las Vegas.
Sydneysider Whittaker's famed fast hands proved too hot for the Russian, who turned away and forced the referee to stop the fight one minute into the third round after appearing to suffer damage to his jaw from a right hand punch.
Whittaker landed a big right a few seconds before the stoppage and another precise and precise powerful shot ended the fight.
The 35-year-old Sydneysider enjoyed his first win since June 2024, having suffered losses in his last two fights at middleweight.
"Back-to-back losses coming back, Bobby has still got it by the looks of things," Whittaker said.
"I had an excellent game plan and I hit as hard as everybody else.
"This is my home now, the middleweight page is closed. I'm proud of the work I did there, but light heavyweight Bobby is here."
Whittaker landed good right and left hand shots in the first 30 seconds, before Krylov took him down but inflicted no damage.
Whittaker got back to his feet and reasserted himself with some crisp punches.
The Australia's slick combination punching made him a clear winner of the second round, with Krylov firing little back, apart from the occasional accurate kick.
Whittaker improved his MMA record to 28-9 and Krylov dropped to 31-12.
