Robert Whittaker | UFC Betting Sites - The Best MMA Online Bookies

Israel Adesanya wants to ‘test out’ Khamzat Chimaev if he gets past Robert Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia

If Khamzat Chimaev can get past Robert Whittaker this summer, a fight with former two-time middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya…

If Khamzat Chimaev can get past Robert Whittaker this summer, a fight with former two-time middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya may be in his future.

On Saturday, June 22, ‘Borz’ will face his first true test at 185 when he meets one of the division’s most respected ex-champions. The Reaper’ is fresh off a big win over Paulo Costa at UFC 298 and is potentially one W away from another crack at the middleweight crown.

Speaking with Ariel Helwani on a recent episode of The MMA Hour, ‘The Last Stylebender’ declared that if Chimaev offers up an impressive showing against Whittaker, He might be enticed to sign on the dotted line for a showdown with the undefeated Chechen monster.

“If Khamzat [Chimaev] beats Rob [Whittaker], I want to test that,” Adesanya said.

Of course, Khamzat Chimaev isn’t the only middleweight on Adesanya’s radar. The New Zealander still intends on settling the score with the man who took his 185-pound strap in September — Sean Strickland.

“I’m gonna get Strickland again,” Adesanya added. “Definitely gonna get him again.“

Above all, Israel Adesanya has some business to handle with Dricus Du Plessis

Before Israel Adesanya handles business with Chimaev and Strickland, he’ll be tasked with taking out South African superstar and reigning middleweight champ, Dricus Du Plessis.

DDP and the ‘Stylebender’ appeared to be on a collision course ever since an uncomfortable staredown following Du Plessis’ win over Robert Whittaker at UFC 290.

However, those plans were dashed when Strickland delivered a dominant performance against Adesanya to win the middleweight title at UFC 293 in September. Since then, Strickland has surrendered the belt to DDP, once again putting the Du Plessis and Adesanya on a path of destruction.

When and where Du Plessis vs. Adesanya goes down is yet to be determined, but with Chimaev vs. Whittaker and now Strickland vs. Costa expected to go down over the next couple of months, things are going to get very interesting at the top of a loaded middleweight division.

Check out Israel Adesanya’s full appearance on The MMA Hour below:

Israel Adesanya wants to ‘test out’ Khamzat Chimaev if he gets past Robert Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia

If Khamzat Chimaev can get past Robert Whittaker this summer, a fight with former two-time middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya…

If Khamzat Chimaev can get past Robert Whittaker this summer, a fight with former two-time middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya may be in his future.

“If Khamzat [Chimaev] beats Rob [Whittaker], I want to test that,” Adesanya said.

“I’m gonna get Strickland again,” Adesanya added. “Definitely gonna get him again.“

Above all, Israel Adesanya has some business to handle with Dricus Du Plessis

Before Israel Adesanya handles business with Chimaev and Strickland, he’ll be tasked with taking out South African superstar and reigning middleweight champ, Dricus Du Plessis.

DDP and the ‘Stylebender’ appeared to be on a collision course ever since an uncomfortable staredown following Du Plessis’ win over Robert Whittaker at UFC 290.

Check out Israel Adesanya’s full appearance on The MMA Hour below:

Khamzat Chimaev calls for UFC Saudi Arabia clash with Robert Whittaker to be first ever 10 round fight

Unbeaten middleweight contender, Khamzat Chimaev has called for his June return against former undisputed champion, Robert Whittaker at UFC…

Unbeaten middleweight contender, Khamzat Chimaev has called for his June return against former undisputed champion, Robert Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia to feature the first-ever 10 round limit bout, between himself and the fan-favorite striker.

Chimaev, the current number eleven ranked middleweight challenger, improved to 13-0 as a professional last October in Abu Dhabi, turning in a close, majority decision win over former undisputed welterweight champion and prior pound-for-pound number one, Kamaru Usman in a short-notice clash.

Robert Whittaker vows to flog next opponent in UFC return — Mandatory Credit: Jeff Bottari – Zuffa LLC

And as for Whittaker, the Auckland-born contender returned from his summer knockout loss to current champion, Dricus du Plessis last summer with a February decision win over ex-title challenger, Paulo Costa.

Khamzat Chimaev calls for 10 round limit for fight with Robert Whittaker

In a now-deleted post on his official X account, Chimaev urged promotional boss, Dana White to book him the first-ever 10 round bout in the history of the organization against Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia.

“10 rounds let’s go first ever time let’s do it @ufc @danawhite,” Khamzat Chimaev posted on his official X account. (H/T @ChampRDS)

Struggling through the second round onwards amid a hang ligament injury suffered against Usman paired with apparent fatigue, Chimaev has already been warned about the potential of him “gassing” out against Whittaker in June by Hall of Fame star, Michael Bisping – even before he called for a 10 round fight.

“Automatically, if you’re in the corner of Khamzat Chimaev, you’ve got to be concerned,” Michael Bisping said. “One thing Robert Whittaker is not going to do is run out of gas. He’s a very, very experienced fighter, fighting at the highest level for a long time. Without getting into the Xs and Os, the obvious things is Khamzat always gasses.”

Khamzat Chimaev rules out UFC 300 return amid links to title fight I'm not fighting during Ramadan — Mandatory Credit: Chris Unger – Zuffa LLC

“He’s a tremendous force of nature, the way he takes people down and dominates them right from the opening bell,” Bisping explained. “He did the same thing against Kamaru Usman. Granted, didn’t get the finish, but he definitely did slow down. Against Gilbert Burns, same thing. He had a great round one, [rounds] two and three were kind of close. Five rounds against somebody like Robert Whittaker, if he can’t finish him early, that could be a disastrous night for him in Saudi Arabia.”

Who wins at UFC Saudi Arabia in June: Robert Whittaker or Khamzat Chimaev?

Michael Bisping unsure Khamzat Chimaev is ready for UFC Saudi Arabia headliner: ‘He always gasses’

Former undisputed middleweight champion, Michael Bisping claims unbeaten contender, Khamzat Chimaev and his corner should be majorily concerned about…

Former undisputed middleweight champion, Michael Bisping claims unbeaten contender, Khamzat Chimaev and his corner should be majorily concerned about his fight with Robert Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia in June – claiming the Chechen more often than not looked severely fatigued at some stage in his fights.

Khamzat Chimaev labelled a crybaby after attacking UFC boss Dana White over title fight — Manadatory Credit: Zuffa LLC

Chimaev, the current number eleven ranked middleweight contender, has been sidelined since he returned to the division at UFC 294 back in October of last year against former champion, Kamaru Usman, narrowly defeating the Auchi native over the course of three rounds.

Michael Bisping calls into question Khamzat Chimaev’s going ability

And drawing former middleweight champion, Whittaker in a massive title-eliminator atop a UFC on ABC 6 card in the summer, Chimaev has been issued a word of warning by Hall of Fame inductee, Bisping, who claimed the Chechen is likely to gas once more in his high-stakes clash.

Robert Whittaker closing as betting favorite to beat Paulo Costa at UFC 298

“Automatically, if you’re in the corner of Khamzat Chimaev, you’ve got to be concerned,” Michael Bisping said on his podcast, Believe You Me. “One thing Robert Whittaker is not going to do is run out of gas. He’s a very, very experienced fighter, fighting at the highest level for a long time. Without getting into the Xs and Os, the obvious things is Khamzat always gasses.”

Khamzat Chimaev issues warning ahead of UFC 297 I didn't know I was scaring them so much — Mandatory Credit: Zuffa LLC

Himself returning at UFC 298 back in February in a co-main event slot, Whittaker turned in a unanimous decision victory over former middleweight title challenger, Paulo Costa.

Who wins at UFC Saudi Arabia: Robert Whittaker or Khamzat Chimaev?

Michael Bisping unsure Khamzat Chimaev is ready for UFC Saudi Arabia headliner: ‘He always gasses’

Former undisputed middleweight champion, Michael Bisping claims unbeaten contender, Khamzat Chimaev and his corner should be majorily concerned about…

Michael Bisping calls into question Khamzat Chimaev’s going ability

Himself returning at UFC 298 back in February in a co-main event slot, Whittaker turned in a unanimous decision victory over former middleweight title challenger, Paulo Costa.

Who wins at UFC Saudi Arabia: Robert Whittaker or Khamzat Chimaev?

Joe Rogan warns Khamzat Chimaev of ‘beefy’ ex-UFC champ Robert Whittaker: ‘That’s a real fight’

Khamzat Chimaev is gearing up for his toughest test as he continues climbing toward the top of the middleweight…

Khamzat Chimaev is gearing up for his toughest test as he continues climbing toward the top of the middleweight division.

On Saturday, June 22, ‘Borz’ will return to the Octagon as part of a loaded UFC Saudi Arabia card from Kingdom Arena in Riyadh. Headlining the historic night of fights will be a 185-pound clash between undefeated Chechen monster Khamzat Chimaev and former middleweight titleholder Robert Whittaker, the winner likely nudging themselves into position for a shot at the division’s top prize.

“Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev in Saudi Arabia, that one is gonna be f*cking wild,” longtime UFC color commentator Joe Rogan said on his popular podcast. “That’s a wild one. That is a wild fight. Whittaker vs. Khamzat is legit. That’s a real fight, that’s a real fight for Khamzat because Whittaker is a big dude. Solid, beefy 185 [pounds], former champion. Both guys started at 170 but it was too hard to make it to 170” (h/t MMA Mania).

Joe Rogan says that Robert Whittaker will be a “real fight” for Khamzat Chimaev

“[Whittaker] is a real 185er, as opposed to… they gave him Kamaru Usman. Kamaru didn’t have a chance to prepare for that.

[Kamaru] was winning in the 3rd round. If that was a 5 round fight who… pic.twitter.com/xoN2Vzurhn

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) April 1, 2024

While ‘The Reaper’ has happily called the middleweight division home for the last decade, Chimaev was essentially forced to make the move from 170 to 185 after a massive mishap on the scale ahead of his scheduled scrap with Nate Diaz at UFC 279.

Khamzat Chimaev’s Only Middleweight Win Since 2020 came against a short-notice Kamaru Usman

Since then, Chimaev has only clocked one win in the weight class, besting former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman who moved up on short notice to face ‘Borz’ at UFC 294 in October. Chimaev won the fight via a majority decision.

“That’s a real 185’er as opposed to [when] they gave [Chimaev] Kamaru Usman, and Kamaru didn’t have a chance to prepare for that [fight],” Rogan continued. “He had 10 days. That’s not enough time. This is a big one. This is Robert Whittaker with plenty of time to prepare. A guy who is just as legit as they get. He just beat Paulo Costa. That’s a good fight. I like that.”

Whittaker is coming off a big win over the returning Paul Costa at UFC 298 in February. Winner of two of his last three, ‘The Reaper’ is 16-5 inside the Octagon and currently sits in the No. 3 spot in the middleweight rankings — eight slots ahead of Khamzat Chimaev.