Lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov will face what many think to be his toughest opponent yet, this October. However former middleweight king, Robert Whittaker does not see this fight, or any other, giving the Dageatani much trouble.
When he was on top of the 185lb division, Whittaker faced a who’s who of killers. He has been there with the likes of Yoel Romero twice, Jacare Souza, and Israel Adesanya, to name a few. He may not have won every single fight, but he won most of them and understands what it takes to be successful at a high level, against the most elite fighters in the world.
Robert Whittaker Praises Khabib Nurmagomedov
As a former champion himself, Robert Whittaker naturally has a high opinion of lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov. Speaking with Submission Radio, the Reaper was asked about the Dageatani fighter and his upcoming bout with interim champ Justin Gaethje. Although this fight does pose a specific set of challenges for Khabib, Rob does not seem to think this will cause any issues for Nurmagomedov. In fact, he somewhat gushed over the champ, going as far as to say he will never lose.
“(Khabib’s) phenomenal,” Whittaker said. “One, he’s very respectful and honorable. I think he’s a stand-up role model for the sport and for people alike. I think that’s how you should act, especially us as warriors going into battle. I think that’s the respect and the honor you have to give your opponent. That’s the first one, that’s my thing. I think GSP did a good job of that as well. And there are a lot of other fighters, but that’s the train I’m thinking of.
“Two, it’s just Khabib’s fighting prowess and style, man,” Whittaker continued. “Everyone knows what he’s gonna do. Everyone knows what he’s gonna do, and no one can stop him. No one can stop him, and it’s no secret. He doesn’t’ come into fights with new game plans, he doesn’t come into fights…it just doesn’t matter. He just knows that he’s gonna take you down and bash the s–t out of you. That’s it, every fight. Same game plan, same layout. He knows.
“It is amazing to have that sort of level of anything in the game,” Whittaker added. “Because there have been good and very high-level guys in the game across the history. There’s been a lot of high-level guys with those sort of skillsets, where people know what to do, and then they start to work them out and they start to counter them. Then you see everyone switches onto it and the guy can’t quite get his game plan off anymore. Not with Khabib. Khabib does it. He makes it work no matter what. And that is amazing. Amazing. Especially at the level that he’s at. I think that’s amazing.
“I don’t see him losing. I don’t see him losing ever. With someone with that caliber, that level of skill, that overwhelming gap, how do you beat him?”
For his next fight, Robert Whittaker is expected to face Jared Cannonier at UFC 254. This is also the same card that will be featuring Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Justin Gaethje. It will be interesting to see how both men look on the night.
