Robert Whittaker believes Israel Adesanya will successfully defend his title against Paulo Costa
Former UFC middleweight champ Robert Whittaker believes reigning champion Israel Adesanya certainly has what it takes to beat upcoming opponent Paulo Costa inside the Octagon. However, Robert Whittaker knows the kind of threat Costa poses and agrees that he is one of the most dangerous opponents Adesanya has ever faced inside the Octagon.
During a media scrum ahead of his Saturday night main event clash with Darren Till, Robert Whittaker analyzed the upcoming Adesanya vs. Costa matchup, which is scheduled to go down at UFC 253 in September. (via The Body Lock)
“Who can say? I think Adesanya has the skillset necessary to beat Costa. He’s very technical, he’s very good. He’s a good fighter. Don’t like him very much but he’s a good fighter. But Costa’s dangerous. He’s so explosive, he’s got mad cardio and he hits like a truck. Look at the size of him. I’m sure that does something, that has something to do with why he keeps hurting people. ‘Size doesn’t matter’ — look at the size of him! You fight him then and tell me it doesn’t matter. Yeah, let’s find out.”
Since losing his title to Adesanya back in October last year, Robert Whittaker has not fought inside the Octagon. Whittaker lost the fight via knockout, and ended up handing his title to the Nigerian born Kiwi. Following the fight, Robert Whittaker revealed that he was dealing with some mental health issues, and decided to take an indefinite break from MMA. The break will come to an end this Saturday when Whittaker walks inside the Octagon at the Yas Islands in Abu Dhabi.
“That second (Yoel) Romero fight, it took heaps out of me. And not just the fight itself, but the bullshit that surrounded it with my [injured] hand and so on. But you keep going. Even with the illnesses I had too, I was out of the Octagon but working twice as hard because I felt like I’d let a lot of people down. So while I wasn’t fighting, I never rested. You can’t say ‘hey, maybe I’m burnt out’. As soon as one fight is over, you have another title fight on the way.”