{"id":39823,"date":"2026-08-05T02:40:55","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T02:40:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sherdog.com\/news\/news\/Robert-Whittaker-eyes-Magomed-Ankalaev-next-dismisses-Paulo-Costa-rematch-202219"},"modified":"2026-08-05T02:40:55","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T02:40:55","slug":"robert-whittaker-eyes-magomed-ankalaev-next-dismisses-paulo-costa-rematch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.martialartskleinanzeigen.com\/videos\/robert-whittaker-eyes-magomed-ankalaev-next-dismisses-paulo-costa-rematch\/","title":{"rendered":"Robert Whittaker eyes Magomed Ankalaev next, dismisses Paulo Costa rematch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
<\/div>\n

Robert
\nWhittaker<\/a> recently listed matchups he\u2019s interested in while
\ndismissing others.<\/p>\n

Whittaker (27-9) has a new range of opponents available after
\nmoving up to light heavyweight. \u201cThe Reaper\u201d is eyeing fellow
\nformer
\nUltimate Fighting Championship<\/a> champion Magomed
\nAnkalaev<\/a>, who defeated Bogdan
\nGuskov<\/a> at
\nUFC Abu Dhabi<\/a> last month.<\/p>\n

\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Robert Whittaker discusses Magomed Ankalaev, Paulo Costa and
\nUFC light heavyweight matchups<\/h2>\n

While Whittaker admits Guskov would have been an exciting opponent
\nas well, he also would have been interested in Jan
\nBlachowicz<\/a> if not for the Polish 205-pounder\u2019s loss to Navajo
\nStirling<\/a> at
\nUFC Belgrade<\/a>. While Paulo Costa<\/a>
\nhas momentum behind him, Whittaker would rather fight others,
\nhaving already beaten \u201cBorrachinha\u201d in a middleweight bout in
\n2024.<\/p>\n

Whittaker also clarified that he will not fight his teammates
\nStirling and Carlos
\nUlberg<\/a>, the current champion.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d love to get in there with like Ank. Jan just had a loss but
\nwould\u2019ve loved to have jumped in there with him,\u201d Whittaker said on
\nthe \u201cBelieve You Me\u201d podcast. \u201cBogdan would\u2019ve been great; anyone
\nup. People keep throwing the name Costa out there, but I\u2019ve fought
\nhim before; there\u2019s a lot of other guys out there. I won\u2019t fight
\nthe boys that I train with. If we reach a point where we\u2019re 1, 2
\nand 3, with me, Carlos and now Nav, I\u2019m sure we can all sit down
\nand find a way to get paid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stirling also recently dismissed the idea of fighting Ulberg and
\nWhittaker, highlighting the camaraderie they share at
\nCity Kickboxing<\/a> in Auckland, New Zealand.<\/p>\n

Whittaker recently moved up to light heavyweight after back-to-back
\nlosses at middleweight. The Australian overcame early adversity to
\nknock out Nikita
\nKrylov<\/a> at
\nUFC 329<\/a>.<\/p>\n