Current UFC interim middleweight champ Israel Adesanya has taken a shot at Yoel Romero in his latest warning to reigning division kingpin Robert Whittaker.

Israel Adesanya (17-0 MMA) will square off with Robert Whittaker (20-4 MMA) in the headliner of this weekend’s highly anticipated UFC 243 pay-per-view event from Australia.

Ahead of the event, ‘Stylebender’ explained why he is a better fighter than ‘The Reaper’ while taking a shot at Yoel Romero.

“I’m the better fighter because you look at my last two five-round fights and you look at his last two five-round fights, obviously MMA math doesn’t work that way, but you look at the way I am in the fifth round, even in my last fight, I showed out,” Israel Adesanya told MMAJunkie. “You look at the way he was in his last round of his last fight and how he looked against a 43-year-old wrestler (Yoel Romero). Now, I don’t strike like a 43-year-old wrestler. I don’t pick my shots like him. If I hurt you, I’m not going to try and bum rush you and then gas out. I’ll find the shot, and I’ll put him away.”

Israel Adesanya is of course referencing Robert Whittaker’s two most previous five round wars with the aforementioned Yoel Romero.

‘The Soldier of God’ fell just short in both of his attempts to defeat the UFC’s current middleweight champion.

Yoel Romero is coming off a decision loss to Paulo Costa in his most recent effort at August’s UFC 241 event in Anaheim.

What do you think of Israel Adesanya taking a shot at Yoel Romero prior to his UFC 243 title unification bout with Robert Whittaker? Do you think we will see an eventual scrap between ‘Stylebender’ and ‘The Soldier of God’? Sound off in the comments section PENN Nation!

This article first appeared on BJPENN.com October 3, 2019