UFC 248: Robert Whittaker reportedly won't fight to donate bone marrow to ill daughter

Never has a fighter pulled out of a fight and won fans because of it.

But New Zealand born UFC star Robert Whittaker is doing just that following reports emerging of the emotional reason why he pulled out of his next fight.

Multiple media outlets are reporting that Whittaker is out of the fight because he is donating bone marrow to his sick daughter Lilliana.

According to Fox Sports, Lilliana, who was born in February 2018, has fallen ill.

Whittaker, who fights out of Australia after moving across the Tasman as a young child, was due to fight Jared Cannonier at UFC 248 in March, his first fight since he lost his UFC Middleweight belt to Israel Adesanya.

"Apologies to all my friends and supporters but unfortunately I won't be competing on the UFC 248 fight card," Whittaker wrote on Instagram when announcing he was pulling out of the fight.

"There are a few other things going on in my life that I need to give priority to and sort out, so I have had to change my plans.

"But I'll be back soon, bigger and better than ever."The post was accompanied by a photo of the former middleweight champion walking and holding hands with his daughter.

Whittaker announced he was pulling out of the clash against at UFC 248 - where Adesanya will defend his belt in the main event against Cuban Yoel Romero - over the weekend.

He posted another photo to Instagram on Monday of himself in the gym with Lilliana watching him work out and captioned it "clearing the mind".

UFC President Dana White did not reveal the reason for Whittaker withdrawing from the Cannonier fight in a recent interview with Submission Radio but said it was one of the most "unselfish things I've seen in my life".

"He's a good man, he's a good human being, and I have a lot of respect for him. Good luck to him in what he's dealing with right now," White said of Whittaker.

"I can't put into words and articulate how I feel about Robert Whittaker. He's the real deal, man." That's personal for Whittaker. If Whittaker wants to talk about that, he can," White said.

"But I'll tell you this, when you talk about somebody whose priorities are in the right place, who is completely selfless and down to the core a good human being, that's Robert Whittaker," White told Submission Radio.

- Stuff