Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker says he’s open to fighting former UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira at 205 lbs.
Whittaker made his 205 lbs debut this summer with a TKO win over Nikita Krylov at UFC 329, while Pereira is currently fighting at heavyweight.
But if Pereira loses to Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 335, he’s said that he will move back down in weight, and if that happens, then Whittaker wants to fight him.
Robert Whittaker Interested in Fighting Alex Pereira
Speaking to Submission Radio, Whittaker admitted that he is interested in fighting Pereira in a UFC light heavyweight contest if the Brazilian moves back down in weight.
“It would be great. I would love to welcome him back (to light heavyweight) – it would be fun. It would be a lot of fun. We would have to wait and see,” Whittaker said (via MMAjunkie.com).
“The division is moving. It’s shifting. A lot of big fights coming up, and we have to see what happens with Pereira. I don’t know how Pavlovich beats Pereira. Pavlovich doesn’t beat him by decision. He’d have to bum-rush him and throw a big bomb of a hand.”
Robert Whittaker Chasing 2nd UFC Title
Whittaker is a former UFC champion at 185 lbs, and he will be chasing his second title in the UFC at 205 lbs. But he first needs to get past Bogdan Guskov at UFC Sydney in February for him to continue his run up the UFC light heavyweight ladder.
Should Whittaker win that fight, he will be in a prime position to fight someone ranked highly in the weight class the next time out and get closer to a 205 lbs title shot. Given that Whittaker is one of the biggest names in the weight class, it could be a situation where he gets a title shot sooner than others just because he has such a big name and knows how to sell a fight better than most.
It all starts with him going out there and picking up a huge win over Guskov at UFC Sydney, preferably by finish, to really put a stamp on things.
Robert Whittaker Open to Alex Pereira Fight at 205 lbs