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Robert Whittakerwants the punishments to be steep for fighters who miss weight. instead, the UFC seems to be going in the opposite direction.
Yoel Romero missed weight at UFC 221in February, only to beat Luke Rockholdand earn a title shot against Whittaker at UFC 225 in June. Romero, of course, missed weight prior to the Whittaker bout and was unable to win the middleweight belt had he been victorious. Whittaker ended up winning by split decision.
Whittaker, 27, seems to find the whole thing ludicrous, he said Monday at a media lunch to promote Wednesday’s premiere of The Ultimate Fighter 28.
“It’s like me going down to bantamweight, not making weight, winning because I’m much bigger and then getting a title shot,” said Whittaker, who coaches opposite Kelvin Gastelumon TUF 28. “It’s not fair. It’s not fair. Because on the flip side, the guys that are making weight don’t make it easy. It wasn’t easy to cut weight and make weight and do the job. We still had to struggle, we still had to diet weeks out. We’re just more professional at it. We just did it right.”
Whittaker (20-4) said he thought about not fighting Romero when he missed weight at UFC 225 in Chicago, but it was a nearly impossible decision to make. He wanted to fight, flew a long way from Australia to compete, needed to get paid and didn’t want to let down all of his fans.
“The people who do make weight are also in a hard position,” Whittaker said. “Because they’re in a position where they still need to make money to pay the bills, to earn a wage, to do their job. But they also have the support of hundreds of thousands of people who have come to see them fight or that are watching them on TV to watch a fight. The fans. That’s kind of why you fight — they drive the sport.
“When you ask a guy, ‘Are you gonna take a fight if your opponent doesn’t make weight?’ Is it really asking? Does he really have a choice? When you back the into a corner like that, is there really a choice to be made? You have to look at the whole process behind it.”
“It’s a very funny topic, missing weight and getting title shots,” Whittaker said. “I think the punishments should be more severe, but I don’t know.”
https://www.mmafighting.com/platfor...&utm_source=twitter&__twitter_impression=true
Bobby Knuckles talking facts
Yoel Romero missed weight at UFC 221in February, only to beat Luke Rockholdand earn a title shot against Whittaker at UFC 225 in June. Romero, of course, missed weight prior to the Whittaker bout and was unable to win the middleweight belt had he been victorious. Whittaker ended up winning by split decision.
Whittaker, 27, seems to find the whole thing ludicrous, he said Monday at a media lunch to promote Wednesday’s premiere of The Ultimate Fighter 28.
“It’s like me going down to bantamweight, not making weight, winning because I’m much bigger and then getting a title shot,” said Whittaker, who coaches opposite Kelvin Gastelumon TUF 28. “It’s not fair. It’s not fair. Because on the flip side, the guys that are making weight don’t make it easy. It wasn’t easy to cut weight and make weight and do the job. We still had to struggle, we still had to diet weeks out. We’re just more professional at it. We just did it right.”
Whittaker (20-4) said he thought about not fighting Romero when he missed weight at UFC 225 in Chicago, but it was a nearly impossible decision to make. He wanted to fight, flew a long way from Australia to compete, needed to get paid and didn’t want to let down all of his fans.
“The people who do make weight are also in a hard position,” Whittaker said. “Because they’re in a position where they still need to make money to pay the bills, to earn a wage, to do their job. But they also have the support of hundreds of thousands of people who have come to see them fight or that are watching them on TV to watch a fight. The fans. That’s kind of why you fight — they drive the sport.
“When you ask a guy, ‘Are you gonna take a fight if your opponent doesn’t make weight?’ Is it really asking? Does he really have a choice? When you back the into a corner like that, is there really a choice to be made? You have to look at the whole process behind it.”
“It’s a very funny topic, missing weight and getting title shots,” Whittaker said. “I think the punishments should be more severe, but I don’t know.”
https://www.mmafighting.com/platfor...&utm_source=twitter&__twitter_impression=true
Bobby Knuckles talking facts
