Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker may not hold the title anymore, but he’s still the top contender in the 185-pound division. Despite being the No. 1 contender, two losses to champion Israel Adesanya makes another title shot unlikely anytime soon.
“The Reaper” takes on No. 2 ranked Marvin Vettori in the UFC Paris co-main event on Saturday, but his future may be in the light heavyweight division.
“I’ve been thinking about 205 for a fair bit. The problem is, I wouldn’t go to 205 to come back down to 185. Just because, I don’t want to go into 205 as a fat 185-er. You see a lot of guys try that, and they just get starched. And then they come back down. It doesn’t make any sense,” Whittaker said during an appearance on Submission Radio.
“You gotta put on muscle, gotta train at that weight, gotta do all the bits and bobs then and there. But I’ve been thinking about 205. I think it would be a more natural weight for me personally. But the height disadvantage and knowing, I don’t know if I want to deal with that. I don’t know,” added the former champion.
“I’m definitely thinking about going up to light heavyweight. I’ve been thinking about it a lot, just because I like the idea. I think it’s a more natural weight for me. But the thing is, I’d have to do it properly. Just like when I moved to 185, I developed a lot of muscle and everything, with zero intention of going back down to 170. That’s how I feel like it has to be. Because you see a lot of 185-ers go up, get starched, and then come back down. And I don’t wanna go up to 205 as a fat 185-er. But I’d have to deal with the height thing as well. Which is kind of annoying. The tall guys,” he said with a laugh.
Sean Strickland on Luke Rockhold’s retirement: ‘I’m glad I don’t have to hear his name’
The fight with Vettori will be Whittaker’s first since losing to Adesanya in a rematch at UFC 271 in February. Vettori was defeated by Adesanya in June 2021 and is coming off a win over Paulo Costa in his last outing.
Former champ Robert Whittaker thinking about a move to light heavyweight
