Robert Whittaker ’THINKS’ he can beat Alex Pereira…

Chael Sonnen talks Robert Whittaker vs Alex Pereira on this episode of Beyond the Fight

All things UFC and MMA with the undefeated Bad Guy, Chael Sonnen. UFC Champions, Jon Jones, Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, Khamzat Chimaev, the MMA hour and commentary on the latest UFC news, UFC Champions in 2022, UFC knockouts and finishes.

[AlmostLikeHuman]

"I think I can take him" might not be the greatest fight promotion in the history of the sport, but it is a very Robert Whittaker thing to say

[joelgutierrez]

These guys are like rock paper scissors. Alex= rock Bobby =paper Izzy= scissors

[sarcasticgenius]

I do favour Rob (I'm also a slightly biased Aussie) but that said I'm not buying the whole narrative that he just goes in there and takes Alex down en route to victory. First off Alex is going to expect the takedown and be prepared to defend at all times. Secondly, Alex is freaking gigantic compared to Rob. There's going to be a big difference in physicality. Rob can grapple but I don't know that taking Alex down is somehow automatic. Rob also has a bit of trouble fighting guys who can manage distance and I worry that he would get nervous on the feet and try to panic wrestle. He also got clipped by Izzy and Till. Even Cannonier had him in trouble late in their fight. So it's not difficult to imagine Alex hurting him as well. This fight is a lot closer than a lot of people think.

[clivejd]

I'm super glad that Pierre is back as a champ after his 5 year break. No clue how he does that.

[jakemple]

damn chael must be rubbed the wrong way about whittaker giving an honest opinion about Colby

[michael]

Everybody thinking they can just wrestle Alex to the ground is probably going to get surprised when they get hit with that left.

[cbryan]

Chael simply doesn't understand Robert's chill way of speaking

[RyanPortland]

Haha when Alex and Izzy were facing off and it said they were both 6'4 I seriously laughed out loud. Either Alex is 6'7 or Izzy is only 6'1. Because there is a 3 inch height advantage for Alex.

[Teemoisbroken]

I think Chael is salty at Rob still for him saying Colby can't strike lol

[GBLynden]

I think I can get it done works for me. Rob beat Izzy last time, but the judges gave it to Izzy.

[toanfraser]

This is classic understated Reaper/Aussie speak e.g. "I think I can take him.", "I'm not stoked for the fight."
He's fine, and he'll be fine.

[jeffreymorris]

From Whittaker, among a group of fighters you could count on one hand, "I think I can take him, " is probably enough. Whittaker beat Izzy on all but three immensely powerful scorecards a little while back.

[SwampCityRadio]

What if Paulo Costa proved to be Perreira's Boogeyman? Costa becomes champ via Clash of Titans, then gets styled up by Izzy, Izzy beats Whittaker narrowly in the number one contenders match, loses to Perrier in the Perreria vs Adesanya 4 rematch then is rematched with Costa for the number one contenders match.

[twistedtrailerparktales]

Oh f yeah, let's keep giving Whittaker and Colby 3rd, 4th, and 5th chances every time they have a win streak of 1. And let's go full Ferguson on Chimaev making him face Rhamonov, Muhammid, and Nickels to prevent the changing of the guard. Oh hell yeah baby.

[tzzzijs]

Literally right before Whittaker said that he said it’s because the way Alex pushes forward and his stance. Dang Chael, you are better than this.

[christianmarten]

If he utilizes grappling easily could in a stand up fight he's got good speed but I think ultimately he would get KO'd to

[sfr]

I think anyone who's game plan is to wrestle and has the strength to get Pierre down would have their way with him. Pierre is just so strong that getting him down is the big question mark in that matchup.

[jayhendricks]

Thank God there is a new sponsor lol. And I'd love to see these two fight

[bobsburgers]

I think it's rob just being humble he often talks like this doesn't like smack talk.

[Razear]

Alex isn't as much of a counter-striker as Izzy is so I think that would make conditions slightly more favourable for Rob but he is still on the wrong end of a long ass reach deficit. He would have to implement a game plan similar to what he did in the Izzy rematch.