Robert Whittaker isn’t shy of the fact his mixed martial arts career has more yesterdays than it does tomorrows at this point.
Since 2009, he has been competing in the sport professionally and since 2012, he has been plying his trade at the highest level with the UFC.
The first New Zealand-born UFC champion and first Australian UFC champion, Whittaker’s resume is stacked with accolades and bouts against some of the biggest names in the sport.
But at 34 years old, and with him and wife Sofia expecting their sixth child, Whittaker suggests he is getting closer to the end of his journey inside the octagon.
“I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Nothing’s set in stone, but there are things that I want to do after fighting,” he tells the Herald.
“Fighting’s very selfish. It’s a very selfish sport and there are a lot of sacrifices involved. I’d like to give back to my kids, to my wife, they all deserve my attention a bit more.”
With that sense of clarity comes a focus for The Reaper. A few more bouts to test himself, to grow as a mixed martial artist and, all going well, to challenge for the middleweight championship one more time.
That starts on Sunday morning (NZT) in Abu Dhabi, where Whittaker (26-8; 17-6 UFC) will compete in the main event against rising star Reinier de Ridder (20-2; 3-0 UFC).
De Ridder, also 34, has been on an impressive run since joining the UFC from One Championship, where he once held the light heavyweight and middleweight titles simultaneously.
De Ridder earned a shot at Whittaker’s spot in the division’s top 10 after walking through hyped prospect Bo Nickal in May and was happy to get back to work quickly.
While he visited Auckland’s City Kickboxing in January to test the waters on whether or not they were compatible should he look to bring part of his training camps across the ditch, Whittaker opted to stay in Australia in preparation for his Dutch rival.
“They didn’t have the bodies at the time, I don’t believe,” Whittaker said.
“But also, we managed to get a lot of bodies locally in Australia. [UFC welterweight] Jono Micallef came over to help us out, [UFC light heavyweight] Jimmy Crute came up, we had a bunch of other boys from Melbourne and Perth from local promotions – we managed to get the bodies we needed for the work that had to be done.”
In de Ridder, Whittaker will be faced with breaking down an awkward but effective striking style as well as avoiding the threat of being taken down, as de Ridder’s strongest asset is his grappling ability with 13 of his 20 career wins coming by submission.
The bout is the first in a run of highly-ranked middleweight bookings and an impressive win could catapult Whittaker back into the title conversation sooner rather than later. The title will go on the line in August when champion Dricus du Plessis is challenged by Khamzat Chimaev, while No 1 ranked Nassourdine Imavov puts his place at the front of the queue on the line against No 6 Caio Borralho in September.
This weekend’s outing is the sort of fight Whittaker is excited about as it presents him with a chance to show his growth since his last appearance in the octagon in October.
“I strive to fight for the best version of myself. I just want to increase my craft and in doing so it will eventually lead to where I want to be. All roads lead to Rome, sort of thing.
“I’m looking for these hard fights. I’m looking for these tests, these forms of adversity.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.