A month after defeat, Robert Whittaker reveals shock at his opponent's game: 'How did that happen?'

Robert whittaker praised the technique of Khamzat Shimaev / Reproduction Instagram

It's been just over a month since Robert whittaker suffered a painful defeat before Khamzat Shimaev No. UFC 308, in Abu Dhabi. The former middleweight champion (up to 83,9 kg) was dominated by his Chechen opponent who finished him with a devastating rear naked choke in the first round. The blow was so brutal that the Australian had to change all the teeth lower ones, which were displaced backwards. A 'old problem', according to the fighter himself.

But aside from the injury, Whittaker admitted he was impressed with what his opponent put up against him. In an interview with the podcast MMA Arcade, the Australian fighter praised Chimaev's level of wrestling.

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“Those two falls just millimeters from the ground… How did that happen? I did a lot of wrestling, a lot of cage training. But it’s very difficult to replicate that kind of fall, his commitment. Congratulations to him! He knows how to play to his strengths,” he highlighted.

It was only the second time in Whittaker's legendary career that he had lost by submission and the first time since 2011, well before his UFC stardom. The Australian had been working to earn another shot at the UFC middleweight title and entered the bout against Chimaev on a two-fight winning streak with convincing performances against Ikram Aliskerov and Paulo Costa. However, the 33-year-old fighter will have to 'go back to the bread line' after the setback against Chimaev.

Even so, Whittaker defended that the Chechen receive the opportunity to fight for the middleweight belt, which currently belongs to Dricus Du Plessis. Undefeated in MMA, with 14 victories, Chimaev has eight triumphs since arriving at the Ultimate, in 2020, two of them in the middleweight division.