WATCH: Robert Whittaker hilariously struggles as he makes multiple attempts to pronounce Jan Blachowicz
UFC light heavyweight Jan Blachowicz has a Polish surname that may not be the easiest to pronounce. Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker was the latest to struggle with Blachowicz's second name.
Blachowicz is set to face light heavyweight debutante Alex Pereira in the upcoming pay-per-view UFC 291's co-main event. Whittaker was previewing the fight in an episode of the MMArcade Podcast alongside Jonny Roses on YouTube, when he found difficulty in calling out the former light heavyweight champion's name.
Whittaker was making a point about Pereira's famed strength when he began to stutter with Blachowicz's name:
“Because we saw when Blackovich, Black- , Blackovix, vicks, Black? [You’re thinking of the character from Wolfenstein] It’s doing me in. Jan. Alright, I’m just gonna call him Jan.”
After fumbling multiple times and still failing to get the name on point, Whittaker resigned to calling Jan Blachowicz by his first name. Meanwhile, podcast host Jonny Roses referenced B.J. Blazkowicz, a fictional character and protagonist of the World War II video game series that began in 1992. The fictional B.J. Blazkowicz is also of Polish descent.
Check out Robert Whittaker's amusing attempts at pronouncing Blachowicz's name on YouTube [19:25]:
Israel Adesanya gives his prediction for Jan Blachowicz vs. Alex Pereira at UFC 291
Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya weighed in on the upcoming fight between Jan Blachowicz and Alex Pereira at UFC 291.
Adesanya has faced both fighters in his career and also suffered losses at their hands, including two to Pereira during their time at Glory Kickboxing. 'The Last Stylebender' stated that Pereira is the harder striker between the two.
Adesanya mentioned that if the fight goes the distance, the likely winner will be Jan Blachowicz but Alex Pereira could catch him with a left hook too:
“If Jan does what I think he’s gonna do, he’s gonna get caught with a left hook. I don’t think this goes the distance. If it does, Jan wins. I felt [Blachowicz’s power]. I think Alex hits harder. It’s just the way he throws, the technique he throws with, the technique he grounds himself. Especially against the fence. He’ll sit there and throw, so that’s how he’s able to hit harder. Jan could definitely learn how to hit harder but if Jan gets him down, I think he’s just going to control him there for three rounds. I’m going Alex by knockout."
Check out Israel Adesanya's full comments on his YouTube video: