“I beat him 9 times out of 10,” Despite losing to Dricus Du Plessis, Robert Whittaker claims being a ‘better fighter’ than the new champion

Top UFC middleweight contender, Robert Whittaker, still believes he fights better than UFC middleweight champion, Dricus Du Plessis.

“I beat him 9 times out of 10,” Despite losing to Dricus Du Plessis, Robert Whittaker claims being a ‘better fighter’ than the new champion

Robert Whittaker says he is better than Dricus Du Plessis (Image via Imago)

Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis fought back in 2023. Du Plessis shocked the world when he won the fight against Whittaker. However, Whittaker still believes he is a better fighter than Du Plessis.

A reporter asked Robert Whittaker at the Sydney press conference whether he thought he lost his aggressive fighting spirit. Responding to this, Robert Whittaker brought up his fight with Dricus Du Plessis and said: 

Dricus is a hungry guy man, you saw in his last fight. And I think I underestimated that hunger. I still do believe I beat him nine times out of ten, I still believe that I am a better fighter than he is..
Robert Whittaker at The UFC 298 Press Conference
YouTube video

Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis fought last year at UFC 290. The fight was a title eliminator for the middleweight championship, and Whittaker lost via technical knockout in the second round. Whittaker was a heavy favorite to win the fight. It was an unexpected upset that surprised many fans and experts. Following the loss, Whittaker admitted that he did not perform to the best of his ability during the fight.

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Meanwhile, Du Plessis’ victory propelled him into the spotlight in the middleweight division. Earlier this year, Dricus Du Plessis defeated Sean Strickland at UFC 297 to become the UFC middleweight champion. The win made Du Plessis the first UFC champion from South Africa.

Robert Whittaker on upcoming fight with Paulo Costa at UFC 298

Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa will headline the co-main event at UFC 298. Whittaker has pledged to hurt Paulo Costa during their fight. In the pre-fight press conference, Whittaker expressed that he is more focused than ever on bringing his aggressive side back.

Paulo Costa faces Robert Whittaker at UFC 298 next
Paulo Costa faces Robert Whittaker at UFC 298 next (Source: IMAGO/UFC.com)

Paulo Costa was initially supposed to fight Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294. However, he got injured and had to undergo elbow surgery due to bursitis. This led him to pull out of the fight. Whittaker and Costa were supposed to fight last year at UFC 284. However, the bout was canceled due to a contract dispute between the UFC and Costa.

Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa will fight this February at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. The main event will feature Alexander Volkanovski defending his featherweight title against Ilia Topuria. It will be interesting to see what goes down in the UFC octagon this February at UFC 298.

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