Robert Whittaker believes he is winning and controlling the fight against Israel Adesanya until he is simply caught.
In a Saturday night UFC 243 main event in Melbourne, Australia, Whittaker lost his UFC middleweight title to Adesanya in a two-round knockout. The Ripper said he felt "good" at the beginning of the battle.
“I and he are two of the best strikers in the world,” Whittaker told a press conference after the UFC 243 battle. “It was tat's heart. And I was caught. Ok."
Whittaker won his nine fights. Since 2014, he has recorded his first losses in the middleweight division. Adesanya, meanwhile, improved to 18-0 as a pro.
Adesanya is known for its striking and striking style, but Whittaker said "no awe" for Adesanya's stand-up game.
“I was surprised that I surprised him. … "I had confidence in myself and had great success with myself."
Whittaker believes that he has a tool to defeat Adesanya. He is open to "obviously" rematch, but said he was more than willing to go back to the cage and get another title shot.
“I want to go again another night,” Whittaker said. “I think I can do that. Really disappointing I think you can beat him. There is a skill to beat him. But we bumped the head and I did 2nd place. I was caught. ”
Whittaker, who has never fought since his victory with Yoel Romero in June 2018, hopes to develop much more actively.
"I didn't plan such a long interval," he said. “It didn't seem that there was no calendar. 'I know what to do between October and December.' It was an injury and illness that kept me in the octagon. Thank you for not hurting me. I'm healthy. I'm fine. You will go home, watch your family, get trained, podcast, and come back. A few months later I came back to work.
“My first loss in this part. Trust me if you say I don't go anywhere. ”