Robert Whittaker is warning Alex Pereira to not combat fellow UFC champion Dricus Du Plessis at middleweight.
Gentle heavyweight champ Pereira (11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) expressed curiosity in dropping again right down to 185 kilos to problem middleweight champ Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC), who’s contemporary off a fourth-round submission of Israel Adesanya at UFC 305. The final time Pereira competed at middleweight, he was knocked out by Adesanya at UFC 287. He has since dominated the sunshine heavyweight division, however Whittaker thinks draining himself again right down to 185 kilos could be detrimental to him.
“Truthfully I don’t assume that’s combat for him,” Whittaker advised Submission Radio. “Yeah, I don’t assume that’s combat for him. But in addition like, once you transfer as much as mild heavyweight, shifting again down is difficult.
“And it’s not such as you transfer up for one combat. He stayed up there. He’s been preventing up there for some time now. So, it might take lots out of him to get down, and Dricus is so sturdy there.”
Whittaker additionally thinks Pereira wouldn’t be capable to deal with Du Plessis’ energy at middleweight.
“Nicely, Alex will get hit, OK, and Dricus likes getting hit,” Whittaker mentioned. “So it’s arduous to see somebody with the quantity of energy to cease Dricus from strolling ahead into you, and Dricus hits arduous. You noticed that within the combat in opposition to Adesanya. Adesanya has obtained like a extremely good chin, and Dricus was nonetheless hurting him sufficient to make him uncomfortable.”
Pereira (11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) will look to notch his third mild heavyweight title protection when he takes on Khalil Rountree (13-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) within the UFC 307 primary occasion Oct. 5 in Salt Lake Metropolis.
For extra on the cardboard, go to MMA Junkie’s occasion hub for UFC 307.
Make sure to go to the MMA Junkie Instagram web page and YouTube channel to debate this and extra content material with followers of blended martial arts.
