Robert Whittaker has spent an extensive amount of time fighting among the top middleweights in the world. Since Israel Adesanya beat Whittaker to the middleweight title, Whittaker worked hard to get another chance to beat Adesanya and win the title again, but he failed. It wasn’t over yet, though for the former champion.
Since then, he has continued his impressive streak by defeating several top contenders in a row. However, his winning streak came to a halt with a devastating loss to Dricus Du Plessis. However, being as tough and stubborn as ‘Bobby Knuckles’ is, everyone had to assume that there was still a lot of gas left in his tank.
Robert Whittaker faces the best performance of Paulo costa at UFC 298
For his comeback fight, Whittaker took on the fearsome Paulo Costa at UFC 298. With the shakeups Costa had with the company and Whittaker’s loss against Du Plessis, fans weren’t sure what was to be expected. But on fight night, the two top middleweights engaged in a bloody war that ended with Whittaker getting his hand raised via a razor-thin decision.
Robert Whittaker! Paulo Costa! Anaheim are on their feet! 👏 👏 👏 #UFC298 pic.twitter.com/t0DbwAlsBY
— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) February 18, 2024
The former middleweight champion gave all the credits to Paulo Costa for arguably showcasing the best performance of his career. The Brazilian was able to inflict considerable damage on Whittaker throughout the bout, almost finishing him in the 1st round with a spectacular spinning heel kick. Whittaker said, “I think that version of Costa beats a lot of guys at the high level. He was much faster than we anticipated.”
Robert Whittaker mentioned himself as great fighter
Following a successful redemption and shutting down everyone who doubted him, Whittaker has his sights set sharply on the middleweight gold, currently held by Dricus Du Plessis. His win over Paulo Costa has included him in the picture of title contention yet again and he is a threat to anybody he faces, even the reigning champion who defeated him before.
He talked about how frustrated he was with how the MMA community treated great fighters like him and Dustin Poirier. He said during an interview with DraftKings, “I love the MMA community… but they can turn on you in the drop of a dime. You know how many times after I lost to DDP, just reading the comments: ‘Robert Whittaker’s a wash’, ‘Whittaker is done now.’ Let’s be fair, I’m smashing most guys.”
Robert Whittaker talks about how the MMA community switches up on great fighters once they lose.
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) March 18, 2024
Mentions himself and Dustin Poirier as examples.
“I love the MMA community… but they can turn on you in the drop of a dime. You know how many times after I lost to DDP, just… pic.twitter.com/edtIs8xoG2
Whittaker has also expressed his desire to fight in a title eliminator in August, when the UFC is rumored to feature in his home country of Australia. He said, “There’s rumors of a UFC card coming to Australia in August. And I think just because of how busy the division is and how everyone’s tied up, I’d love to fight on home soil in August.”
The perseverance that Robert Whittaker has displayed throughout his career so far has been nothing but remarkable. Another potential championship opportunity is not too far away from the decorated former champion.
