Robert Whittaker credits Dricus Du Plessis for fighting him.
That’s because UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya wanted Du Plessis (19-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) next, but the South African fighter will have to get through Whittaker (24-6 MMA, 15-4 UFC) first at UFC 290 on July 8 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Former champion Whittaker’s only two losses at middleweight have come against Adesanya.
“(I) definitely (respect that),” Whittaker told Submission Radio. “And that’s one of the reasons why I have to respect the threat that he brings, because he’s looking for hard fights. He doesn’t want the easy road, and you’ve got to respect that.”
According to BetMGM, Whittaker is a -375 favorite over Du Plessis, who’s a +280 underdog. But Whittaker has a theory as to why Du Plessis is heavily underestimated.
“I think because he’s not super flashy, because he doesn’t do crazy things and doesn’t really do things that stand out amazingly, people overlook him,” Whittaker said. “They underestimate his capabilities. But he won’t find that in me. I understand the threat he brings to the fight, and I’m treating it with all due respect.”
Whittaker hasn’t scored a finish since his TKO win over Ronaldo Souza in 2017, but hopes to break that streak against Du Plessis.
“It’s going to be a dog fight, but I’m looking to put him away,” Whittaker said. “I want to put him away. Not that I haven’t tried with everybody else, but I want to get a finish.”
Adesanya admitted he wasn’t too motivated to fight Whittaker a third time, and is manifesting a Du Plessis win. Whittaker only could laugh off his reaction.
“I’m sure he wants Du Plessis to win so that he can fight him instead of myself,” Whittaker said.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.
