Struggling Whittaker Won’t Retire, But Belt ‘A Pipe Dream’

Robert Whittaker’s career has taken a difficult turn.

For much of the current decade, Whittaker’s goal has been to recapture the UFC Middleweight crown, which he lost during the rise of Israel Adesanya in 2019. For five years, Whittaker dispatched numerous top contenders while in the hunt for gold, first to earn a second title shot against “Stylebender” (which he lost) and then work to earn another chance after that disappointing rematch.

For a few years, Whittaker was the clear-cut second-best Middleweight only to Adesanya. Then, he lost to Dricus Du Plessis, who went on to capture gold shortly afterward. It was a major upset and tough loss, but “Stillknocks” proved to be a special fighter. Undeterred, Whittaker kept pushing forward and picked up two excellent wins, a clear decision over Paulo Costa and tremendous knockout over highly-touted Ikram Aliskerov.

“The Reaper” was riding hot into his title eliminator versus Khamzat Chimaev back in Oct. 2024, but he wound up with his teeth shattered inside a round. He attempted to rebound versus red-hot Reinier de Ridder, but the split-decision went against him after 25 grueling minutes.

At 34 years of age, Whittaker is no longer the No. 2-ranked guy. There are now quite a few fighters between him and the title, forcing the fan favorite to reevaluate his position and future plans. While Whittaker won’t retire after the consecutive losses, he also admits that retaking UFC belt is no longer at the forefront of his mind.

”The belt is kind of like a pipe dream at the moment after losing to de Ridder,” Whittaker admitted on Submission Radio. “It’s another loss. It pushes me back into much further than I want to be from the title, the pathway to where I wanted to finish up. So right now, my trajectory has kind of changed. I’ve got a few fights left, I want to enjoy the journey. I want to enjoy the fights. I want to enjoy the camp process, fight week, the fight itself. I want my family to be part of that. I want my boys and my kids to see the show, see the background of the big corporation that is the UFC … That’s my biggest goal right now.”

As for his immediate future, Whittaker mentioned that he’s still considering a Light Heavyweight move and eyeing the Sean Strickland match up. He’s discussed both options before in the past, but the timing may be right for the “Tarzan” brawl, seeing as Strickland has lost two of his last three. There are lots of rising contenders at 185-pounds right now, so there are plenty of interesting match ups available either way.