"I did not give him the respect” - Dricus du Plessis’ title victory has made Robert Whittaker re-evaluate his preparation for their UFC 290 clash
Robert Whittaker was left with the realization that Dricus du Plessis was a better fighter than he'd thought after seeing the South African's title win at UFC 297.
Du Plessis took on Strickland in the main event of the promotion's first pay-per-view of 2024, where the pair of middleweights went to war for all five rounds. 'Stillknocks' was awarded a split-decision victory and became the division's new king.
The South African's title shot was set up after an upset victory over Whittaker at UFC 290. Few expected du Plessis to provide 'The Reaper' with a stiff challenge, but he secured a TKO victory in the second round to the surprise of fans everywhere.
In the wake of UFC 297, Whittaker has shared his thoughts on Dricus du Plessis as a fighter. During a recent episode of the MMArcade Podcast, the former champion reflected on his bout with 'Stillknocks', saying this:
"[Du Plessis] beat me before, and I want that rematch. I want to rematch him. Obviously that's not what I'm thinking about at the moment, I want to fight [Paulo Costa]. But Dricus is on a list of people I want to rematch."
He continued:
"But seeing that fight from him, it made me realize that I did not prepare adequately for him. I did not give him the respect he deserves. I understand he was a hard and tough fighter, but I don't think I understood how togh and strong and hungry he really was. Respect to that, I won't make that mistake again."
Listen to Robert Whittaker's comments below from 13:20:
Robert Whittaker admits he "wanted a crack" at Sean Strickland before his title victory
Sean Strickland took on Israel Adesanya at UFC 293, where 'Tarzan' secured one of the biggest upset wins in title fight history after dominating 'The Last Stylebender' to secure the title.
He was awarded a unanimous decision victory and was later scheduled to face off against surging contender Dricus du Plessis at UFC 297, where Strickland suffered a defeat.
Robert Whittaker has now revealed that he has had his eyes on 'Tarzan' for a while. 'The Reaper' was recently interviewed by Sporting News Australia, where he shared the following:
"I was looking at [facing Strickland] before [his fight with Adesanya] anyway. I wanted to have a crack at Strickland before he beat Izzy, and it got harder to reach him. But right now my focus is on trying to beat Paulo Costa."
Listen to Robert Whittaker's comments below from 0:18: