Middleweight Robert Whittaker may be listed as a New Zealander by the UFC but his accent tells a much different story.
The Auckland-born, Australian-raised fighter will headline this weekend’s UFC Fight Night in Melbourne, and despite having spent the majority of his years on that side of the Tasman, also proudly carries his Maori heritage into the Octagon, the evidence of which is inked across his shoulder.
Whittaker won’t commit to either, but he'll happily fly the flag for both.
"One hundred percent," said the 25-year-old told Newshub. "I'm half-caste and I'm proud of that."
"I get a lot of stick from the Maori side or the Aussie side, trying to pick and debate over it - but why can't I have both?"
Whittaker was originally set to appear in the card's co-main event until an injury to Luke Rockhold saw his scheduled fight against Ronaldo Souza scrapped, thrusting his bout with American Derek Brunson into the closing act.
"At first I was shocked, it hadn't sunk in," said Whittaker of his sudden promotion. "Then about a day later it started to settle in and I thought wow, this is my time."
"Fighting in front of my home country, not to mention headlining it as well - it's one of the biggest milestones of my career so far."
Competing professionally since 2009 after an introduction to the sport by his Hapkido instructor, his appearance on reality show The Ultimate Fighter back in 2012 is where his career really gained traction.
Whittaker tore through the show's tournament with a succession of sparkling performances, securing a contract with the UFC as part of his prize as overall champion.
Four years later, Whittaker is in the midst of a five-fight win streak which has seen him shoot to the cusp of the division's top five fighters, with a chance to push into the middleweight elite with a victory over Brunson this weekend.
The American is on a six-fight win streak of his own, ending his previous four contests via brutal first round knock-out. A fifth opening round finish would see him claim the UFC record.
A dynamic and explosive striker in his own right, Whittaker may lack the solid wrestling foundation of his opponent - a decorated grappler at college level – but has complete confidence that he has the tool-kit required to get his hand raised, entrusting the game plan put in place by his coaching staff.
"He's got heavy hands and he's got great wrestling and grappling so I have to be aware of that, but I have plenty of strengths of my own that I have to throw at him….it's my trainers' job now to manipulate my training now in focus of him."
"I see lots of holes in his striking."
Regardless of the outcome, Whittaker certainly isn't taking his rapid rise for granted, and he admits seeing the likes of arguably the greatest fighter of all time Anderson Silva alongside him in the UFC's middleweight rankings is more than a tad surreal.
"It's unreal. I never thought I'd be in this position that I'm in.
"I've worked hard and I just want to keep on climbing and make sure I stay here."
As for what lies ahead, the Sydney-based fighter isn't discriminating.
"If you're in the top 10 I've lined you up already. I've already thought about trying to fight you and I do want to fight you."
And his long-term future may just take see his journey completed full cycle, with his 'beautiful' native New Zealand never far from his thoughts.
"If I have the money when I retire I'm going to get some land out there and disappear," he laughs.
UFC Fight Night: Robert Whittaker vs Derek Brunson takes place live on Sunday (NZ time) from 4pm
Newshub.
