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Israel Adesanya has revealed that he has to be wary of Robert Whittaker heading into their upcoming championship bout at UFC 271. Adesanya recently acknowledged that Whittaker has high-level coaches in his corner and shared that he isn't overlooking 'The Reaper' going into their rematch.
Some of Whittaker's coaches include Justin Fitzgerald of Stand Strong Boxing and Alex Perez of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Smeaton Grange.
Adesanya and Whittaker fought for the first time at UFC 243 in Melbourne, Australia. 'The Last Stylebender' won the fight via second-round KO to capture the middleweight title. The 32-year-old has successfully defended the strap against Yoel Romero, Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori since.
During a recent interview with Combat TV, Adesanya revealed that he's motivated for UFC 271 and wants to dominate every aspect of the fight. He said:
"It's not so hard [to get up for the rematch]. I won't even say more difficult. But there's an [expectation]. Everybody expects me to wash this guy [Robert Whittaker], same way everyone expected me to wash Vettori. So it's the pressure I put on myself... I have to dominate in every facet."
When asked if he would employ a different strategy while fighting Whittaker for the second time, the reigning middleweight champion confirmed that he would have a different approach in the rematch. He added:
"I'm not going to fight him [Robert Whittaker] the way I fought him the first time... And I know he's not going to fight me the way he fought me the first time. He's a silly boy. If he thinks he has someone else's blueprint to beat me, he's a silly man. But his team's smart so that's why I take him seriously. He himself, he's a silly boy."
Check out the entire interview below:
Francis Ngannou predicts the outcome of Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker II
Francis Ngannou believes Israel Adesanya is the firm favorite heading into his rematch with Robert Whittaker. The heavyweight kingpin talked about his excitement for the UFC 271 clash and called Adesanya one of the best strikers in the world.
In a clip posted to his YouTube channel, Ngannou revealed why he expects 'The Last Stylebender' to retain his title, saying:
"Oh, Adesanya all day long. I mean Whittaker, he has the same trick and Israel Adesanya even he broke it down [on his FREESTYLEBENDER YouTube channel last year]. Israel Adesanya's striking is outstanding, man! Like when you look at this, you never know what is happening in the fight. Everything can happen in the fight but Adesanya he wins this fight 9 times out of 10."
Check out the clip below:
Israel Adesanya is cementing his legacy as one of the greatest middleweights of all time. If he can overcome Robert Whittaker again, he'll move clear of Chris Weidman in second with 4 defenses, behind only Anderson Silva who defended the title 10 times.
