"There's definitely no bad blood" - Robert Whittaker addresses potential Israel Adesanya trilogy fight

Robert Whittaker recently shared his thoughts on the possibility of trilogy fight with Israel Adesanya taking place.

Whittaker is set to take on Paulo Costa at UFC 298 on Feb. 17, 2024. He is coming off a second-round knockout loss against Dricus du Plessis and will look to get back in the win column with a win over the Brazilian.

The former middleweight champion has a long history with Israel Adesanya, and has faced him twice in his UFC career. The Australian fell short on both occasions, with his first loss coming via knockout. The second time around, he performed much better and took Adesanya to the scorecards. Unfortunately for 'The Reaper,' the judges gave the nod to Adesanya.

During a recent interview with ex-UFC fighter Megan Anderson, ‘Reaper’ was asked if he is interested in fighting Adesanya in 2024, even though the fight may not be for a title. Whittaker said that he is focused on fighting Costa and that a potential win over him would open many opportunities for him. He said:

“There’s definitely no bad blood [with Israel Adesanya]. There’s a good rivalry there but there’s no bad blood. Honestly, I’m just focusing on beating Paulo Costa. If I beat Costa, honestly the world is my oyster. I can kind of go in any which way direction. So my focus is on just coming back to form, beating Costa and then I’ll have a look at things.”

Watch Robert Whittaker make the statement below [9:17]:

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Robert Whittaker admits to his mistake in the Dricus Du Plessis fight

Robert Whittaker was regarded as the second-best fighter in the middleweight division after Adesanya. A potential win over Dricus du Plessis was expected to get him closer to the trilogy fight against Israel Adesanya. Du Plessis, however, spoiled those plans and beat ‘The Reaper’ via second-round knockout.

However, Whittaker's loss has aged well, as Dricus du Plessis recently went on to Sean Strickland and become the new UFC middleweight champion at UFC 297.

During his recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Whittaker admitted that he underestimated Du Plessis the first time, saying:

“You need to be prepared for that sort of fight, you need to be prepared for that mentality, for that mindset when you’re fighting those sort of guys. Maybe I didn’t give that the gravity it deserved, because that is a powerful force. I’m sure I will not make that mistake again.“

Watch Whittaker make the statement below: