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Robert Whittaker has admitted that he never turned down a title rematch against Israel Adesanya. The former division champion claimed there might've been a miscommunication and timelines between the parties involved didn't work out.
During his interview with ESPN's Ariel Helwani, Whittaker addressed UFC president Dana White's claims of him turning down a title rematch against Israel Adesanya.
Instead, the UFC went on to let Adesanya move up to the light heavyweight division and challenge Jan Blachowicz for his title at UFC 259.
"Not at all, definitely not. I would never do that, which sane man would? You get paid more for title shots. But there was a miscommunication and maybe the timelines didn't work. I guess, you know, some people can argue that, 'If he wanted that bad, he would've fought straight away.'"
Robert Whittaker added that he wanted to take some time off in December to stay with his family and wait for the birth of his fourth child. However, The Reaper is now back for good and hasn't been too out of shape.
"And I wanted December off, at all costs. I wanted to enjoy Christmas with my family and there was nothing more important than that and I got to experience that and I'm very happy and I was there for the birth of my fourth child, which is great. I'm back working now. Anyway, that's pretty good. I try not to get too bent out of shape on that sort of stuff, it'll drive you crazy."
Robert Whittaker will fight this weekend at UFC Vegas 24
In the main event of UFC Vegas 24, Robert Whittaker will face Kelvin Gastelum in the main event of the card. With a win to extend his winning streak to three fights, The Reaper would be expected to face Israel Adesanya in a title rematch.
Gastelum recently got back on winning terms with a victory over Ian Heinisch after a few losses in the middleweight division over the past few years.
