Robert Whittaker targets August return against Sean Strickland after UFC 298 win: ‘He’s in the sights’
Former undisputed middleweight champion, Robert Whittaker has confirmed plans to make a return to the Octagon as soon as August, targeting a fight against fellow former titleholder, Sean Strickland – after his unanimous decision win over Paulo Costa earlier this month at UFC 298.
Whittaker, who holds the number three rank in the middleweight pile, returned to the winner’s enclosure at UFC 298 earlier this month in Anaheim, turning in a decision win over former title chaser, Costa in the pair’s co-main event outing.
The walk came as Whittaker’s first since he featured on the main card of UFC 290 back in July during International Fight Week, where he suffered a stunning second round TKO loss to Dricus du Plessis – after the newly-crowned champion earned a stoppage win at the Octagon fence.
Robert Whittaker weighs up Sean Strickland fight
And welcoming the possibility of a rematch with Pretoria native in order to avenge his loss and strike gold, Whittaker claimed a potential title-eliminator against former titleholder, Strickland is also on his radar.
“I’m angling towards the gold,” Robert Whittaker said during an appearance on the MMArcade Podcast. “I wanna reclaim my belt, you know. And I would love to run it back with Dricus (du Plessis) – especially ‘cause he’s got the gold as well, so it’s two-in-one, right?”
“But I do understand that (Sean) Strickland is in – is in line, like in the sights a little bit,” Robert Whittaker explained. “Everyone’s talking about him a lot, he’s at the top. And that kinda gives me the path to the gol that I’m longing for. So, I’m not really fussed on the opponent at the moment.
Sidelined since January, Strickland most recently dropped a split decision loss to common-foe, du Plessis, in which he lost his middleweight title in the main event of UFC 297 in Canada.
Who do you thinks wins in a future fight: Robert Whittaker or Sean Strickland?
