Robert Whittaker is convinced that he’ll have a third clash with Israel Adesanya.
Whittaker and Adesanya did battle a second time. Their first meeting took place back in Oct. 2019. In that encounter, it was Adesanya who scored the second-round TKO.
The rematch at UFC 271 was quite different but the winner remained the same. Whittaker had far more success in his second attempt to defeat “The Last Stylebender.” Despite his efforts, Whittaker was beaten via unanimous decision.
During his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier, Robert Whittaker expressed his belief that he’d done enough to win the fight. Of the 25 media members accounted for on MMADecisions.com, only five felt Whittaker did enough to win but the general consensus is that the fight was competitive.
Whittaker attended the UFC 271 post-fight press conference and he shared his opinion that a trilogy bout with “Izzy” is destiny (h/t Aaron Bronsteter).
Whittaker at his post-fight press conference says that he's excited for the future, while he thinks that he should have won, he takes solace in the fact that he has improved to the point where he came close to winning.
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) February 13, 2022
“Whittaker at his post-fight press conference says that he’s excited for the future, while he thinks that he should have won, he takes solace in the fact that he has improved to the point where he came close to winning.”
Whittaker says that he believes a third fight between them is inevitable because he's going to stomp everyone that stands in front of him.
He believes Israel will still be the champ when the time comes and that he will win the next one.
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) February 13, 2022
“Whittaker says that he believes a third fight between them is inevitable because he’s going to stomp everyone that stands in front of him.
“He believes Israel will still be the champ when the time comes and that he will win the next one.”
Whittaker went on to say that he’ll decimate anyone who stands in his way (via Shaun Al-Shatti).
Robert Whittaker: "Honestly? A third fight between me and Izzy is inevitable. It’s inevitable, because I’m going stomp anybody who comes in front of me again." #UFC271
— Shaheen Al-Shatti (@shaunalshatti) February 13, 2022
“Honestly? A third fight between me and Izzy is inevitable. It’s inevitable because I’m going stomp anybody who comes in front of me again.”
Whittaker will likely need to get back in line if he wants another crack at Adesanya. UFC President Dana White has already committed to giving Jared Cannonier the next middleweight title opportunity.
Robert Whittaker vs. Marvin Vettori, anyone?