Matchmaker Monday following UFC Vegas 24
UFC Vegas 24 showcased what may have been the best Robert Whittaker ever.
Whittaker looked amazing in his main event fight against Kelvin Gastelum. Of course the two had history with one another as they were supposed to main event UFC 234 in February of 2019, but Whittaker withdrew from the fight on hours notice after having emergency surgery.
After years of wondering how that fight would have went down, we now have an answer as Whittaker won every single round on way to clear cut unanimous decision victory.
Now that the fight is over, Whittaker is hoping to rematch Israel Adesanya, who took his middleweight title at UFC 243. Meanwhile, Gastelum is still a contender looking to climb back into title contention. Let’s find out what’s next for both of these men on this Matchmaker Monday.
Robert Whittaker
Result: defeated Kelvin Gastelum by unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 24
Next: rematch with Israel Adesanya
A breakdown isn’t really necessary here. Whittaker is next in line at 185 pounds.
After losing his title back in 2019, Whittaker admitted that he was burnt out. He made adjustments to training schedule to allow him to heal up and most importantly spend more time with his wife and kids. Since doing that, he secured three straight victories in which he looked fantastic in all three outings.
You cannot deny Whittaker at this moment. He looks better now than he did when he ruled over the division. Now Adesanya is a whole other monster as he looks unbeatable at middleweight, but given that he’s coming off a loss at light heavyweight and Whittaker has looked so good, this is the fight.
Kelvin Gastelum
Result: lost to Robert Whittaker by unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 24
Next: Derek Brunson
No shame in losing to Whittaker, so Gastelum isn’t going to lose any stock. Finding his next opponent is going to be interesting though.
The middleweight division is in a unique spot. Adesanya moving up to challenge for the light heavyweight title earlier this year has the 185 pound division a bit tied up, but it’s still moving at least.
Right now, Paulo Costa and Darren Till are out, but they should be returning at some point this year. Then there’s Marvin Vettori, who is absolutely getting one of those two. Then there’s Jared Cannonier whose ranked high as well, along with Derek Brunson whose been on a roll.
A lot of guys and a lot of uncertainty. There’s a handful of guys and a lot of matchups to be made and while Gastelum has lost four of his last five, he’s still looked at as one of the top guys in the division because he’s always fighting top tier guys.
I like a matchup against Brunson because of their current standings in the division. Brunson wants a top guy and is ranked high, but he may need a one more opponent before getting that big time title elimination fight and a win over Gastelum secures that. Meanwhile, Gastelum is in a unique spot where a win over someone like Brunson shows he belongs towards the top of the division, while a loss sets him back for sure.
