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“You Can’t Keep Doing That Forever!” – Robert Whittaker Makes a Shocking Revelation

Published 04/24/2020, 2:26 PM EDT

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Former UFC middleweight champion, Robert Whittaker finally revealed the reason behind his absence.

Whittaker last competed against Israel Adesanya in October. The Aussie was stopped in the second round by a vicious KO. Since then, he has not competed in the UFC. ‘Bobby Knuckles’ was slated to face off against Jared Cannonier at UFC 248. But the match never materialized, as Whittaker abruptly pulled out due to personal reasons. 

As expected, rumors began to float on the internet. One report even claimed that Whittaker had donated his bone marrow to his daughter. 

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In a recent interview with the Daily Telegraph, Whittaker laid all rumors to rest.

“I have no idea where that came from,” Whittaker said.“During the break, I got off all social media to spend time with family, so it was my old man who actually contacted me, explaining there was this crazy rumor going around, and from there, it just got a life of its own. But my kids were all fine. They are fine. It was me who had the issue.”

Robert Whittaker experiences a moment of realization

Whittaker had a hectic schedule. He adopted a training program that required him to work 7 days a week. Besides that, he has battled chickenpox, a double hernia surgery, and a collapsed bowel. All of these factors burnt Whittaker out.

For him, it all began during the second Yoel Romero fight, a match that he fought with a broken hand.

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During his routine ascent up the Wana dunes on Christmas Day, Whittaker experienced a moment of realization. Robert just stopped climbing, as he learned that he was not with his family on a special occasion.

“I just stopped,” Whittaker said. “Then (I) stood there, asking, ‘What the f**k am I doing?’ It was Christmas Day. My family was somewhere else. That moment, it’s when everything crashed.”

“My team suggested several plans which I took to and, because it worked, I just kept at it. But you can’t keep doing that forever, you just can’t. Worse than the physical grind, too, was the mental drain. I just wasn’t home.”

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As far as his last fight with Adesanya is concerned, Whittaker believes that he was not himself. And claims that he can perform much better. Consequently, Robert changed his team and his training program. The Australian now gets to spend his Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons with his family.

Whittaker’s next bout will be against the Scouser, Darren Till in August. But recent developments suggest that things might change.

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Written by:

Shantanu Mayenkar

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