Whittaker’s UFC 308 Camp Included Opetaia and Teah
In the build-up to his Oct. 26, 2024 bout with Khamzat Chimaev in Abu Dhabi, Robert Whittaker trained with several of Australia’s leading combat-sports athletes. Jai Opetaia helped sharpen the striking work, while kickboxer Charlie Bubb and Olympic wrestler and Commonwealth Games medalist Jayden Lawrence joined sessions during camp, according to Sporting News.
The training drew attention because Chimaev was known for fast starts and pressure wrestling. Whittaker entered the bout as a former middleweight champion, while Chimaev was unbeaten in his professional career. The matchup was widely viewed as a test of whether Whittaker could keep the fight at range and defend the early takedown attempts.
How the fight ended
The fight lasted 3 minutes and 34 seconds. Chimaev took Whittaker down, worked to his back and finished with a face-crank submission in the first round. It was Whittaker’s first submission defeat in the promotion. The official event report recorded the finish; Reuters’ recap also described Chimaev’s early control and submission.
Whittaker’s later return
Whittaker returned to competition at light heavyweight in July 2026 and stopped Nikita Krylov with strikes at 1:01 of the third round. That win, reported by the event’s official results page, came nearly two years after the Chimaev bout and marked a successful start in his new division.
Sources
- Sporting News: Whittaker’s Australian training partners
- Official event report: Chimaev submits Whittaker
- Reuters: Event recap
- Official event results: Whittaker stops Krylov in 2026
Tags: Wrestling, Olympic Wrestling, UFC 308
