“I’m prepared for him but I don’t know if he’s going to make it to the fight.”
A middleweight title unification bout between reigning champion Robert Whittaker and interim champ Israel Adesanya is all but confirmed, as Dana White recently hinted that both men will headline the upcoming UFC 243 pay-per-view in Melbourne, Australia.
With that said Adesanya, who beat Kelvin Gastelum in a Fight of the Year candidate this past April at UFC 236, isn’t sure Whittaker will actually make the walk to the Octagon.
Whittaker has developed a reputation for pulling out of fights and, Adesanya, who is one of the most active fighters on the UFC roster, is arguably the champ’s biggest critic.
“I’m going to put a wager out there, see if he makes it to this fight,” Adesanya said in a recent interview with Submission Radio (h/t Abhinav Kini of The Body Lock MMA). “Because for me, I’m keeping that same energy with the way I train. If he is, is he going to make it to the fight? I’m prepared for him but I don’t know if he’s going to make it to the fight. That’s just the history.”
‘The Last Stylebender’ also responded to Whittaker’s criticism of the Gastelum fight, claiming that he is always prepared for war but trains much smarter than ‘The Reaper.’
“Fucking hell, I looked like a fucking potato after that fight,” Adesanya said. “I took some shots. But not once did my ass hit the ground. Kelvin’s ass hit the ground like five or six times, or even seven.
“You can say whatever you want. I just stay calm and composed. I’ve been through a lot of adversity. The way that we train is different. We push to the breaking point but we’re smart about it. That’s why we don’t get hurt and pull out of every single fight.”
UFC 243, which is rumored to feature Whittaker vs. Adesanya in the main event, is expected to take place later this year, Oct. 5 at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia.