5 potential opponents for Robert Whittaker after UFC 271 setback

#4. Robert Whittaker vs. Marvin Vettori

Vettori is ranked No.3 with a record of 18-5-1

Robert Whittaker and Marvin Vettori are the last two men to challenge Israel Adesanya for the middleweight title. Both men went the distance with the champion and had moments of success in the wrestling department. However, the pair ultimately fell short in their efforts to win gold.

With both men now having suffered two defeats to the current champ, their path to the title won't be easy. To generate interest in a trilogy fight, they will have to clear out much of the competition at middleweight. With each of them in a similar spot, perhaps pitting them against each other would make sense.

With that being said, this fight does not rank higher because there seems a good chance that the UFC will save it for a later date. This is because Vettori has already rebounded from his loss with an impressive victory over Paulo Costa.

Due to this, the UFC may choose to wait and see if Whittaker can get back in the win column himself before pairing up these two. A bout between the pair seems inevitable at some point, and it will be interesting to see how Whittaker copes with Vettori's wrestling-heavy offense.

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#3. Robert Whittaker vs. Paulo Costa

Costa is ranked No.5 with a record of 13-2

Paulo Costa and Robert Whittaker were scheduled to fight in April of last year. However, Costa ultimately withdrew due to illness. With both men now needing a big win to get momentum back on their side, perhaps it is time to match them up again.

Costa is on a two-fight losing streak and spectacularly failed to make weight last time out against Vettori. The UFC also wanted Costa to move to the light heavyweight division. If he fails to do so, you can expect the UFC not to do 'Borrachinha' any favors in terms of an opponent.

Whittaker would undoubtedly be a tough test for Costa. This fight could also be a good way to decide whether the Brazilian needs to move up to 205 lbs. For Whittaker, it would allow him to get back on track in a big way as he now attempts to re-build following Saturday's loss.