Kelvin Gastelum reveals why Robert Whittaker defeats Israel Adesanya in a title rematch
Kelvin Gastelum believes Robert Whittaker will reclaim the UFC middleweight title the next time he gets a shot at gold.
The 29-year-old middleweight spoke to the media before UFC 263 kicked off, speaking about the Jared Cannonier bout and dissecting the Robert Whittaker fight, among other things.
Kelvin Gastelum heaped praise on Robert Whittaker for outclassing him the way he did when they met in April at UFC Vegas 24. He also said that if Robert Whittaker fights in the same manner, there is a massive chance of him walking away as the second-time undisputed UFC middleweight champion.
"Rob [Whittaker] impressed me a lot in that fight against myself. If he fights the way that he did against myself, he will have a real chance at regaining that middleweight title."
Speaking about their fight where 'The Reaper' was nothing but a class act and took home a unanimous decision, Kelvin Gastelum revealed that he felt utterly eclipsed by his opponent's performance.
Robert Whittaker made Kelvin Gastelum 'look bad' in a way that even Israel Adesanya could not, the latter revealed.
"He was just a step ahead the entire time... He impressed me a lot. I didn't think he was that good. Looking back at the fight, I've never felt like that in a fight, not even Israel Adesanya made me feel like that. He really frustrated me, really made me look bad."
Kelvin Gastelum went on to list a few things that Robert Whittaker did better than him in their fight.
"He was much faster than me. He really used his footwork very well. He did not want to stand and pocket with me. I kept hearing his corner saying, 'Get out of the pocket, get out of the pocket, you don't want to stand in the pocket'. He used his jab really well. He was little bit faster than I am."
Kelvin Gastelum added that there were a few other technical things that Robert Whittaker bested him at, but they were nothing he could not improve himself on.
Kelvin Gastelum is rooting for Marvin Vettori at UFC 263
Kelvin Gastelum was asked to opine on the huge title fight of his division going down in the main event of UFC 263. He stated that he was rooting for his longtime training partner Marvin Vettori to win and that 'The Italian Dream' can easily get the job done if he follows in the footsteps of Jan Blachowicz, the first fighter to defeat Israel Adesanya inside the octagon.
As for the Jared Cannonier fight, where he has stepped in after Paulo Costa's withdrawal, Kelvin Gastelum revealed he was hoping to land that bout on that particular date, so it has all worked out perfectly for him.
Watch the full interview with Kelvin Gastelum below: