Robert Whittaker wants to rematch Israel Adesanya.
Robert Whittaker is looking to avenge his loss to Israel Adesanya following a dominant decision win over Kelvin Gastelum in last night’s UFC on ESPN 22 headliner in Las Vegas, claiming that he has done more than enough to earn a title shot.
Whittaker has won three straight since he lost the middleweight title to Adesanya in 2019 and says a rematch is the only fight that makes sense right now.
“It’s funny, after the win, everybody’s calling for (a title shot) for me,” Whittaker told MMA Junkie at the post-fight press conference. “That’s kind of how I’ve always taken to the approach of fighting, is that if you beat ’em all, you’re eventually at the top. It’s a simple path, and there is no other fight that makes sense to me other than that tile shot, and that’s the shot that I want and that I’m getting.”
Adesanya was somewhat condescending in giving Whittaker his props, but ‘The Reaper’ was glad to get ‘The Last Stylebender’s’ attention and is confident the rematch will take place in front of another sold-out crowd at the Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia.
Good job my son.
— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) April 18, 2021
“I’ve played video games my entire life; I am no stranger to trash talk,” Whittaker said. “And honestly, he gets to do it. He won the last fight between us both, so I guess it was coming, right? It’s just him being him, I guess.”
Whittaker is currently #1 in the UFC middleweight rankings.