Whittaker and Adesanya Prepared for War at UFC 243
UFC 243 is 10 days away and as it gets closer to the fight, both Robert Whittaker (24-0, 11-2 UFC) and Israel Adesanya (17-0, 6-0 UFC) are cool, calm and collective before they square off in front of an expected UFC record-breaking crowd.
The two will meet in the main event to unify the middleweight championship. Whittaker sits as the currently middleweight king, while Adesanya won the interim championship in April by defeating Kelvin Gastelum.
Whittaker hasn’t fought since his five round war with Yoel Romero in June of 2017. Despite being inactive, he doesn’t see himself having ring rust.
“If you’re not competing then the pressure is going to get to you and you’re going to crumble,” said Whittaker in a teleconference with media on Wednesday. “In the offseason I’ve been competing in jiu jitsu competitions and staying active. I’ve been doing this long time and I’m at a level that I know what I have to do when I go to work.”
Adesanya isn’t buying what Whittaker is trying to sell.
“There’s a difference between fighting in front of 50 people in some hall and 60,000 people in a stadium,” said Adesanya. “I’ve been active and he hasn’t. I have momentum and he doesn’t.”
While Adesanya thinks Whittaker will have ring rust, he doesn’t feel the need to get off to a fast start.
“I’m just going to do what I always do in there,” said the Nigerian-New Zealander. “Once I get flowing it doesn’t matter what he brings or what he presents to me.”
Whittaker, 28, believes he has what it takes to get a win over “The Last Stylebender” after seeing his win over Gastelum.
“Gastelum was able to get in on him and he’s smaller than me,” Whittaker said.
“The Reaper” also feels ready for Adesanya’s long reach advantage.
“I’m going to stay on the outside and then use my speed to get inside,” said the Australian. “That’s normally my game plan whenever I fight a taller opponent.”
Adesanya understands why Whittaker is confident, but he doesn’t seem worried since making adjustments in his training camp.
“I think his camp might look at my last fight and say ‘Kelvin was able to get close,” said the 30 year old. “That was an error on our part. We’ve taken care of those errors on our side so I’m going to be able to use my height and reach just like I’ve always have.”
UFC 243 will take place at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. The UFC has stated that over 50,000 people will be in attendance. The UFC attendance record currently sits at 56,214 people. The record came at UFC 193 in the same venue when Holly Holm upset Ronda Rousey.
