Whittaker Would Love to Welcome Pereira Back to Light Heavyweight: "It Would Be a Lot of Fun"

Robert Whittaker has never been one to call his shot loudly. So when the former middleweight champion was asked about Alex Pereira on Submission Radio this week, the way he answered said plenty. He is open to the fight, he would enjoy the fight, and if Pereira comes back down to 205 pounds, Whittaker would happily be the man waiting for him. "It would be great. I would love to welcome him back (to light heavyweight), it would be fun. It would be a lot of fun. We would have to wait and see," Whittaker said. It is a matchup that makes sense the moment you say it out loud. Whittaker moved up to light heavyweight this year after back-to-back losses at middleweight, and the move has suited him. He stopped Nikita Krylov in the third round at UFC 329 in July, a winning start in his new division that reminded everyone what the Australian can do when he is not cutting himself down to 185 pounds. His next assignment is already set: he meets Bogdan Guskov in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 298 in Sydney on February 7, a homecoming fight that comes first. Pereira, meanwhile, is at a crossroads of his own. The former middleweight and light heavyweight champion is 0-1 at heavyweight after Ciryl Gane finished him in the second round of their interim title fight at UFC Freedom 250 in June. The Brazilian has a date of his own before any talk of a return to 205 can become real: he faces Sergei Pavlovich in a five-round co-main event at UFC 335 on December 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Whittaker, for his part, does not see an upset coming in that one. The appeal of Whittaker against Pereira is easy to understand. Pereira is one of the most feared strikers the sport has ever seen, a two-division champion whose left hook has ended nights for champions. Whittaker is one of the cleverest fighters of his generation, a former champion who has shared the cage with the best middleweights of the last decade and never once looked out of his depth. Put them together at light heavyweight and you get a striker's duel with real stakes, the kind of fight that sells itself. There is nothing agreed, nothing signed, and both men have fights booked in the coming months. Whittaker has Guskov in Sydney first, and Pereira has Pavlovich in Las Vegas. But the best fights in this sport often start exactly like this, with one fighter asked a question on a radio show and answering it honestly. Whittaker answered honestly. He would love it. He would welcome Pereira back. And if the Brazilian decides his future lies back at 205 pounds, the Australian will be waiting.