Khamzat Chimaev Denied of Credit for Almost Breaking Robert Whittaker’s Jaw as Dricus Du Plessis Corrects Narrative After UFC 308

No one expected Robert Whittaker to tap as fast as he did against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 308. More so, no one saw Whittaker having three of his teeth break and pushed in because of Chimaev’s submission attempt. The outcome of their UFC bout had Robert Whittaker breaking the record for the fastest tap to a submission in company history.

The collective noise from the UFC 308 event was filled with talks of Chimaev being the first to break Whittaker’s teeth in the Octagon. However, one man took issue with the unusual accolade bestowed on Chimaev, and rejected claims that he was the first. In a recent interview, middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis claimed he was the first man to break Robert Whittaker’s teeth inside the Octagon.

Dricus Du Plessis shares insights about Robert Whittaker’s injury at UFC 308

‘Borz’ for a long time had been facing multiple health issues forcing him to stay out of action. The pair was previously scheduled to take on each other at UFC Fight Night but Chimaev had to pull out at the last moment. However, he silenced all his critics with an impressive performance against the former champion. The 33-year-old tapped in the first round itself which came as a surprise to many out there. However, suffered from an injury to his jaw which forced him to end the fight quickly.

Middleweight champion ‘Stillknocks’ paid close attention the UFC 308 co-main event between ‘Borz’ and ‘The Reaper’. Du Plessis must have been as surprised as everyone at the speed of Whittaker tapping, but wasn’t surprised at the outcome of Chimaev’s submission attempt. The South African champion had fought Whittaker at UFC 290, finishing him with strikes in the second round. After their bout, Robert Whittaker made a confession that Dricus Du Plessis took quick note of, only to bring it up in an interview with Submission Radio.

“I’m the one that crushed Rob’s teeth. I didn’t even know it. Rob said it, I didn’t know it and I thought ‘Geez that s**ks. But Rob is the one who made that known that it was actually in our fight where he got for the first time.”, said the South African champion. It seems like the champion is not just competitive about his skills in comparison to Chimaev’s.

MMA fighters are prone to injury and Robert Whittaker is no different, however shocking. But was there anything that the former champion could have done to prevent this injury? According to the champion, ‘The Reaper’ should have allowed himself to fully heal from the injury which he got after his fight at UFC 290.

Robert Whittaker’s injury happened because of being excessively active

Dricus du Plessis announced his arrival last year when he defeated Robert Whittaker at UFC 290 via knockout. It was later revealed that ‘Stillknocks’ was the one who pushed ‘The Reaper’s teeth inside which affected his fight at UFC 308. Fast forward three fights later, the former champion found himself in the same situation against the very dangerous Khamzat Chimaev. Du Plessis feels that it would have been better for Whittaker if he had taken some time off to completely recover from the injury.

While speaking to ‘Submission’ the South African fighter said, “Obviously, Rob had those problems [breaking his teeth at UFC 290], and he was fighting – he was active after that fight,”. He further pointed, “He fought two times, and he was in camp the whole time, so I think that was the problem. He didn’t get enough time to really recover.” With Khamzat Chimaev winning and sitting at #3 on the rankings, it seems very likely that he will challenge Du Plessis for the title next. Whittaker on the other hand will once again have to get back to winning ways if he wants to become the champion again.

Who will he get the opportunity to fight Dricus Du Plessis next in the middleweight division? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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