Whittaker: Romero’s will may remain, but I’ll damage his body

Robert Whittaker spoke recently with Fernanda Prates and Ken Hathaway for MMAjunkie ahead of his fight with Yoel Romero on Saturday at UFC 213 for the interim middleweight title. Whittaker in on a seven-fight win streak, while Romero has won eight in a row.

He’s a tough dude, said Whittaker. He has knockout power, and he has explosive power all the fight. From the first minute to the last minute, he’s explosive and dangerous. He’s got great wrestling, which can help him control the fight. And he’s got knockout power. You mix those two together, all around it’s a good formula.

But I’m going to control this fight. I think it’s going to be a smart fight, and whoever pushes their game plan on one another is going to win this fight. You’ve got to dictate the pace. I have a set of skills that can do that, so we’ll see.

They each defeated ‘Jacare’ Souza and Whittaker won faster, something he doesn’t see as meaningful.

This isn’t video games, said Whittaker. It means nothing to me. Every fight and every matchup is different. And how people match up will effect the results drastically. You can have one fighter, may beat another fighter who beat another fighter. It doesn’t mean anything.

I just see me putting too much hurt on him. His will might be there, but the human body can only take so much damage. I’ve just got to get my hands on him, and I will do that.