Robert Whittaker opens up on potential Khamzat Chimaev and Paulo Costa matchups

Robert Whittaker has opened up on potential fights with Khamzat Chimaev and Paulo Costa in the near future, making some interesting comments about both fighters in the process.

During his appearance on The MMA Hour, Whittaker shared his thoughts on Israel Adesanya's recent win over Alex Pereira to regain the middleweight championship and where he fits in the title scene at 185lbs. He mentioned that he still hopes to fight Adesanya for a third time but isn't keen on fighting Costa, who recently signed a new contract with the UFC.

He said:

"I'm not fighting him [Paulo Costa] because mate, this is the second time I was supposed to fight him and he's pulled out. And it just mucks everything up, I have to do a whole camp and I make expenses and costs and everything like that to get to a point where he falls away. This is the second time he's done it. I want a fight that's going to happen."

When asked about the possibility of fighting Chimaev, the former middleweight champion was also not interested because he believes that there should be a greater emphasis on the ranking system. He mentioned that 'Borz's recent fights haven't been contested at 185lbs, so he doesn't think he should cut the line at middleweight, saying:

"He's [Khamzat Chimaev], he's not in the division rankings...I'm not a huge fan of guys just sliding in and fighting wherever they want. Yeah, it's a different place. The rankings are there for a reason, I like fighting top-5 guys. That's just where I'm at. I like fighting top-5 guys because...they're the best of the best."

It remains to be seen who the UFC plans on matching Whittaker up with as it's unlikely that Adesanya will accept another rematch, especially coming off back-to-back fights with Pereira.

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When did Robert Whittaker last compete in the octagon?

Robert Whittaker's most recent fight took place at UFC Fight Night 209, where he fought former title challenger Marvin Vettori in the co-main event of the promotion's debut event in Paris, France.

It was an excellent performance by 'The Reaper' as he earned a unanimous decision win after the judges scored the bout 29-28, 30-27, and 30-27 in his favor. It was also an important win as he bounced back from his unanimous decision loss to Israel Adesanya earlier that year.

The former middleweight champion was then scheduled to fight Paulo Costa at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia. However, the bout was canceled after the promotion was unable to come to terms with Costa.