Former middleweight champion and 185-pound top contender Robert Whittaker faces third-ranked Marvin Vittori at the UFC Paris Co-Main Event on Saturday.
Whitaker has belonged to current champion Israel Adesanya for the past eight years. Despite Whittaker’s impressive record, including victories over second-ranked Jared Cannonier and fourth-ranked Derek Brunson, Vettori doesn’t think Whittaker is improving as a fighter. Whitaker disagreed.
“He was wrong. I think I’m improving,” Whittaker said during UFC Paris Media Day. “I think there’s solid evidence that I’m improving. I think the win behind the rise is solid evidence that I’m improving. I think the way the second game with Adesanya is the hard evidence that I’m showing, so I think I’m getting better.”
Whittaker thinks he’s a better fighter than Vettori. He thought he was “too much” for the “Italian dream” and Vitori underestimated him.
“He wanted to turn it into a dog fight. He wanted to turn it into a bar fight. That was his fighting style,” Whitaker said. “I’m very different. I’m in and out. I hit hard and I hit fast. I believe I’m technically better than him. I think I’ll hit him too much. I think I’m going too far with him. “I think he underestimated my ability, my speed, my hitting intensity, and I think that will be announced on Saturday.”
Israel Adesanya Gives his predictions for the UFC Paris Main and Co-Main Event
