Robert Whittaker still has plenty of fight left in him.
After a disappointing loss to current middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis in his last outing, Whittaker had something to prove in his return at UFC 298. Whittaker showed that he’s still just as dangerous as ever as he engaged in a three-round war on the feet with Paulo Costa before ultimately earning a unanimous decision victory.
Nothing came easy but Whittaker’s output and accuracy just kept tagging Costa round after round. He also did a lot of damage with a blistering series of calf kicks that left golf-ball sized swelling in Costa’s shin.
In the end, the judges scored the fight 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 for Whittaker to get the nod.
“This is the exact fight I prepared for,” Whittaker said. “He’s a tough dude. I put a lot of pressure on myself to come here and perform, especially after my last fight. I’m looking to make an amends with Dricus. I’m back.”
When the fight got underway, Costa came out firing immediately, displaying the kind of power that made him one the best middleweights in the world but Whittaker was undeterred. Whittaker adjusted to the early aggression and then countered with a series of stiff calf kicks that landed with a sickening thud.
Swelling started to form on Costa’s lead leg, which slowed him down enough that Whittaker used his speed to catch the Brazilian off guard. Just when it was looking like Whittaker was in control, Costa uncorked a hellacious spinning heel kick that blasted the former champion and put him on wobbly legs.
Costa rushed forward looking for the finish but time ran out before he could put Whittaker away.
As the second round got underway, Costa’s confidence surged but Whittaker wasn’t backing down as he continued to stand in the pocket during every exchange. Whittaker was still landing with his combinations, including more of those nasty calf kicks that were doing a lot of damage.
Costa came back at him with a powerful jab that saw Whittaker’s face turn into a bloody mess but he didn’t show any signs of slowing down. As much as Costa had the power advantage, Whittaker just kept connecting with more frequency, although he had to be wary about getting too aggressive on the feet.
Nothing could get Costa to back down as he continued marching forward and he cracked Whittaker with several hard leg kicks of his own. Costa also kept finding a home for his lead jab but Whittaker was giving as good as he was getting in every exchange.
Over three rounds, Whittaker’s volume really was the difference as he just kept tagging Costa repeatedly and never giving the one-time title challenger much of an opportunity to come back at him.
With the win, Whittaker jumps right back in the title picture at 185 pounds and he’ll undoubtedly keep a close eye on the division where du Plessis now holds the title.
