After successfully making weight for UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Tuivasa, number one middleweight contender Robert “The Reaper” Whittaker celebrated in a fashion truly appropriate to the event’s Parisian setting – by digging into a plate of delectable-looking croissants and French pastries. Whittaker proudly posted photos of his well-earned feast to social media accounts on Twitter and Instagram.
Gane vs. Tuivasa, which takes place tomorrow in Paris’ famous Accor Arena, marks the UFC’s debut event in France. According to a report by MMA Junkie, the sport of mixed martial arts has only been legalized by the French National Olympic and Sports Committee since 2020 – creating significant hurdles to the UFC’s attempts to break ground in France.
France’s first UFC Fight Night will, fittingly, be headlined by the country’s very own French-born Ciryl Gane, a former interim heavyweight champ, who will be facing down Australia’s Tai Tuivasa.
Whittaker, looking for redemption after a February 2022 decision loss to current middleweight king Israel “The Last Stylebender” Adesanya, will be squaring off with Italy’s Marvin Vettori, who also swallowed a decision loss to Stylebender in 2021. Whittaker’s defeat at Adesanya’s hands in 2022 and 2018 mark his only losses in the Octagon since a knockout by Wonderboy all the way back in 2014. The Reaper otherwise boasts a near-unbroken eight-year string of hard-earned victories.
At a press conference with MMA Junkie, Whittaker laughed off potential concerns about the Italian Vettori’s potential home field advantage in France. “Europe’s a big place,” Whittaker told reporters from MMA Junkie. “I’m pretty sure they all hate each other! I don’t think there’s a unified front against me.”
He went on to express confidence in his victory, adding, “[Vettori] wants to turn it into a dogfight. He wants to turn it into a bar room brawl – that’s his fight style. […] I’m very different. I’m in, out, I hit hard, I hit fast, I’m technically better than him, I believe. I think I’m going to hit him too much. I think I’m going to be too much for him. I think he’s underestimating how good I am, how fast I am, how hard I hit, and I think that’ll come out on Saturday.”
Tune into all the action on Saturday, September 3, via ESPN.
