Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker might be 0-2 against the current 185-pound king, Israel Adesanya, but he remains determined to recapture UFC gold. Whittaker recently appeared on The MMA Hour to explain why a third clash with “The Last Stylebender” is inevitable.
“I know that I have one more shot against Izzy if that’s what it is or if he gets dethroned I definitely have another shot at gold. I think getting that third fight with Israel will be a deciding point for that or whoever else it is.”
Whittaker Promises Third Adesanya Fight: “I’m just running through everybody else”
It would be silly not to because I’m just running through everybody else. Especially the way the second fight left off, I’d have to have come the closest since he’s gotten the title to taking it back off him.”
After dispatching Marvin Vettori at UFC Paris, Whittaker declared himself the “most dangerous man in the division”. He elaborated on the comment, explaining exactly why he should be feared.
“I’m the most dangerous man in the division. Izzy, he’s the champion of the division, he beat me the last fight as well. He’s a great fighter. But I’m the most dangerous man. I can beat anyone in the division. That last fight against Israel I got within a hair’s breadth of taking everything away from him. Just the fights that I’ve been in and the opponents that I’ve had, I’m not just beating them. I’m flogging them. There’s a difference in that.
I’m hurting these guys and that’s what makes me so dangerous. It’s because I don’t just come to the fight to win, I come to break my opponents. And I’m not a big talker or anything, but mentality-wise, that’s what I do when I go in there. I don’t go in there expecting to leave there.
That’s why a lot of the injuries I have when I leave the octagon, it’s because I’ve done them to myself. Throwing too many kicks or throwing too many punches with reckless abandon, it’s just how it is.”
Israel Adesanya has endured criticism of late for what some see as “boring” fights. Whittaker believes it’s got more to do with the caliber of challengers than the champ himself.
“Israel’s fighting the exact same way he has always fought. He’s a picture-perfect defensive striker that uses his physical attributes perfectly with the way he fights. The only difference now is that he’s fighting much higher quality guys and they’re harder to stop, harder to go away, a bit tougher. He’s always fought that way. He’s always fought defensively, safe.
And he gets the W. I guess that’s what you want.” Do you think we’ll see Robert Whittaker with the UFC middleweight belt ever again? Let us know in the comments.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBlw5kLzQ-E
