Robert Whittaker, the No. 2 middleweight in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, is determined to get a third chance to fight Israel Adesanya, even if he has to run through other fighters to get there.
Robert Whittaker has his sights set on a third fight against Israel Adesanya after watching Adesanya defeat Alex Pereira at UFC 287. Whittaker, who is ranked No. 2 in the middleweight division, has faced Adesanya twice before, first losing his title via a second-round knockout at UFC 243, and then coming up short in their rematch at UFC 271. While a good chance of Whittaker facing Pereira for the middleweight title existed had Adesanya lost at UFC 287, Adesanya’s knockout victory leaves Whittaker uncertain about his immediate future.
Whittaker acknowledged the problematic nature of his current position in an interview with Submission Radio, stating, “I’m in a tricky position. I know this. I’m hunting for [the title shot]. I’m never going to stop hunting for him, and that’s just the truth of it. I will never stop. I will never stop coming for him. And if I have to run through people and just end people’s careers to get that third shot at him, then I will. That’s just what I’m going to do.” He went on to mention that Adesanya took four tries to defeat Pereira, but he’s confident it will only take him three attempts to secure his redemption.
Whittaker further clarified his reaction to Adesanya’s victory, saying, “My reaction to Izzy winning was happiness. I was happy for him to win. I think it was a great way for him to win. I think it was a great story closure for their little period… And I guess a big thing that I realized is just how bad I want to fight Izzy. If Alex would’ve won, I would’ve moved up to fight Alex. But it’s not the same. I want to take the belt off Izzy.” Whittaker’s ultimate goal is to defeat Adesanya and reclaim the middleweight title, driven by the challenge of overcoming him and proving himself.
Following the UFC 287 main event, Whittaker turned to Twitter to suggest that a trilogy bout between him and Adesanya still makes sense: “Amazing fight and great story finisher. Rest up, see you soon,” he wrote. However, Whittaker later admitted feeling slightly foolish for joining the crowd of fighters calling out Adesanya, saying, “Well, for one with the tweet, OK, I feel like a c**k. Because bloody everybody and their mate started calling him out. I didn’t realize everybody was calling him out. Otherwise, I would’ve just kept my mouth shut. I don’t wanna join those dudes. Yeah, I want that fight, but not at the cost of calling him out with everybody else. Everybody wants a piece of him. It made me feel so mainstream.”