Robert Whittaker says he “saw a lot” from Dricus du Plessis during title win at UFC 297

Robert Whittaker recently weighed in on the UFC 297 main event between Dricus du Plessis and Sean Strickland and noted that he was impressed by the South African's performance.

'Stillknocks' earned a split decision win over Strickland to become the new UFC middleweight champion after an entertaining hard-fought bout. During his appearance on today's episode of The MMA Hour, Whittaker noted that he was somewhat dismissive of Du Plessis when they fought last July and mentioned that his determination was on full display this past Saturday. He said:

"I didn't really give him the props he was due maybe...I saw a lot in that last fight of him. He really dug in, he really wanted it, he was a hungry guy. And, you need to be prepared for that sort of fight...For that sort of mentality, for that mindset when you're fighting those sort of guys...I'm sure I will not make that mistake again."

Despite the loss, Whittaker is still very much in the title picture at 185 pounds, so it will be interesting to see whether they'll cross paths again in the octagon. If he can bounce back from his loss in impressive fashion, the former middleweight champion could close in on another title shot.

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Robert Whittaker still confident Paulo Costa fight will happen at UFC 298

Robert Whittaker addressed some of the uncertainty surrounding his fight against Paulo Costa being signed for UFC 298 and noted that he is still confident they will be fighting.

During the aforementioned appearance, the former UFC middleweight champion brought up that he believes Costa is a great matchup for him. He mentioned that he isn't too concerned with the Brazilian claiming that he never signed the contract yet. He said:

"Like other times, I would fight someone, The UFC will get me to fight someone. I think it's a good fight for him [Paulo Costa], I think it's a good fight for me. We're both high level middleweights, we're both trying to work our way back to the top of the food chain, so I don't see any reason for him not to [sign and fight]."