Robert Whittaker and Darren Till have been enjoying friendly back-and-forth exchanges on social media for the better part of the year.
It started with Till's repeated question of "Rob?" on Instagram and Twitter. Then the two joked about the kind of junk food they were eating during their respective pandemic-related quarantines. In April, the two agreed to a catchweight of 195 pounds -- rather than a 185-pound middleweight bout -- so neither had to diet.
The two genuinely like each other, but there's no doubt the time for quips will be over when they enter the Octagon for the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday night in Abu Dhabi.