UFC 298: Rob Whittaker Is Realistic About Sporting Mortality Ahead Of Clash With Paulo Costa

Rob Whittaker is confident he can still compete with the best in the pision, but the former UFC middleweight champion admitted he may only have three years left in the sport.

The 33-year-old will face Paulo Costa at UFC 298 in Anaheim on February 17 (February 18 in Australia), hoping to get back into the world title fight after being knocked out at the hands of the now champion Dricus Du Plessis in his last fight.

Whittaker was the favorite going into that clash, but Du Plessis stopped him in the second round with a barrage of punches after stunning the Australian with a heavy punch along the way.

Du Plessis claimed the 185-pound title when he defeated Sean Strickland via split decision at UFC 297.

Whittaker is confident he could turn things around in a rematch with the South African, believing he still has what it takes to win back middleweight gold, but is honest in admitting he won’t stay that way forever.

“I gave myself a time limit,” Whittaker said. Sport News last month.

“I think 36 years is a good time to leave.

“I want to make sure I leave no stone unturned. “I want to leave it all there.”

Reflecting on the relationship between the physical advantages of youth and the wisdom that comes with experience, Whittaker said he still enjoys fighting and believes he is at his competitive peak.

“There is a difference. As you get older, your body doesn’t recover as well as it used to,” she said.

“But in saying that, I am much wiser and I am a much better fighter, performer and combat athlete than I was then. And that’s really a trade-off.

“Fighting is what I am. Don’t get me wrong, there are times in camps and fights that just aren’t fun, but it’s where I really feel alive.

“It’s like this is what I do. This is what I was born to do. If I was doing anything else I would feel lost, I’m sure.”

The Sydney resident has largely kept his head down since his loss to Du Plessis, opting to return to the gym in an effort to avoid a repeat of that situation.

“I guess it wasn’t really the loss that hurts, at least for me,” he said.

“It’s more the disappointment for not having performed, for not showing up and that ate away at me.

“I sat down with my coaches and just went back and threw myself into training because I don’t want to feel like that again.

“I don’t want to feel like the work wasn’t done. “I don’t want to come to a fight and not show up.”

Whittaker has since admitted fox sports He probably should have pulled out of the fight with Du Plessis due to injury, but has refused to use that as an excuse or give any further details.

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In Costa, “The Reaper” has an opponent with the firepower to make him pay for any mistake or flat performance, even if the Brazilian has not fought since August 2022.

Whittaker, however, said he is ready to fight fire with fire.

“I feel like in the last fight I didn’t show up, I didn’t show up,” he said.

“I want to fight Costa and perform like every other time, and that’s what I want you to expect: the Rob Whitaker who shows up and puts on a show.

“In a perfect world, I can just hit his face with my gloves and he walks away.

“That’s a perfect world and that’s what I’m training for, I’m training to hit him for the full 15 minutes, trying to put him away, trying to put him out for 15 minutes, that’s what I’ve been working on. “

Whittaker will be joined by two other Australians in Anaheim, with Alex Volkanovski looking to defend his featherweight title, while Justin Tafa takes on Marcos Rogerio de Lima in a heavyweight showdown.