UFC president Dana White commented about Robert Whittaker’s successful 205 lbs debut against Nikita Krylov at UFC 329.
After spending the first 14 years of his UFC career fighting at welterweight and middleweight, Whittaker moved up to light heavyweight at age 35 to give himself another life in the sport after sapping himself by cutting weight.
His light heavyweight debut went well, as Whittaker defeated Krylov via third-round TKO after hurting his opponent with heavy strikes in what was a successful 205 lbs debut.
Dana White Reacts to Robert Whittaker’s 205 lbs Debut
Speaking to reporters following UFC 329, White reacted to Whittaker’s debut in his third UFC weight class.
“Especially a guy like Whittaker who’s been around, he came off ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ and has done incredible things and won titles, defended titles, done it all. If he feels like he wants to move up, he knows his body better than I do, and he looked damn good tonight against a very tough durable guy (in Krylov),” White said.
While there were some suggestions that Krylov had broken his jaw against Whittaker, White confirmed that wasn’t the case and that Krylov did not break his jaw in the fight.
“When the fight ended, we thought he broke his jaw. We transported him, and his jaw was not broken,” White said.
What’s Next for Robert Whittaker?
After winning his UFC light heavyweight debut against Krylov, Whittaker should jump into the top-15 rankings at 205 lbs.
For his next fight, one potential opponent could be the winner of the UFC Belgrade fight between Jan Blachowicz and Bogdan Guskov, who meet on August 1 in a rematch after they fought to a draw last year. Whittaker taking on the winner of that contest would certainly be an intriguing matchup.
Another option could be Alonzo Menifield, who is ranked in the top 15 and who seems to be one of the gatekeepers to the top 10 of the weight class. He’s another longtime veteran of the Octagon, so matching him up against Whittaker would certainly be a very interesting fight for both men as they each look to break into the top 10 at 205 lbs.
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