Ex-UFC Champion Robert Whittaker Considers Move to Light Heavyweight

"The Reaper" began his UFC career in the welterweight division.

Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

It looks like former UFC middleweight titleholder Robert Whittaker might test himself in a third weight class before his career is over.

Whittaker Contemplates Light Heavyweight Move

The welterweight tournament winner on The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes, Whittaker moved up to middleweight in 2014 and put together a nine-fight win streak that saw him claim the UFC’s 185lbs' title before he was stopped by Israel Adesanya at UFC 243.

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“The Reaper” came up short in a rematch with Adesanya in 2022 and currently sits at #4 in the UFC middleweight rankings, but his hopes of reclaiming the division’s title appear distant after Khamzat Chimzev submitted him in the opening round of their meeting at UFC 308.

Speaking about UFC Featherweight Champion Ilia Topuria's double-champ plans on his MMArcade Podcast, Whittaker recently suggested that he might be open to moving up to the light heavyweight division.

Whittaker was submitted by Chimaev in his last fight at UFC 308. / (Zuffa LLC)

“Me? I wouldn’t go down, I can’t go [back] down [to welterweight]…I’m still playing with the idea of going up to light [heavyweight] dude.”

The 20-pound jump between middleweight and light heavyweight could present a significant challenge for Whittaker, and even if a division change is on his mind the 34-year-old admits that the holiday season isn’t the best time for him to make any major career decisions.

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Feb 17, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Paulo Costa fights against Robert Whittaker during UFC 298 at Honda Center. / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

“It’s just like – I’m a big dude, much bigger than people think I am…I don’t know, it’s Christmas. I don’t want any stressful questions.”

A move up to light heavyweight would see “The Reaper” join the list of contenders looking to take the division’s belt from reigning champion Alex Pereira, while the middleweight division is currently ruled by Whittaker’s former opponent Dricus Du Plessis.

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