Whittaker: Du Plessis loss 'worst performance of my career'

Robert Whittaker is as critical as anyone when it comes to his last fight.

The former UFC middleweight champion suffered an upset TKO loss to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 290 earlier this month. A victory likely would have earned him a trilogy bout against current champ Israel Adesanya but, instead, he's dwelling on what he considers his poorest showing in 31 professional fights.

"I went out there with the intention of putting my best foot forward and giving the best performance of my career, and ended up giving the worst performance of my career," Whittaker said on his "MMArcade Podcast." "That's the hardest part about the loss - I know I can do better."

"The Reaper" blames himself for not showing up to fight.

"I put months and months and months of work into the fight, working things with my different coaches ... and I went out there and I did absolutely none of it," Whittaker said. "Absolutely none of it. The work just went out the window. That's the most upsetting part. Not only did I lose - losing is one part - but I didn't do anything I worked on. It's just disappointing."

The Australian is in somewhat unfamiliar territory, as this was his first loss at 185 pounds in a non-title fight. He was 12-2 in the division before facing Du Plessis, with Adesanya responsible for both of Whittaker's defeats. He dropped the title to Adesanya in 2019 and then fell short by unanimous decision in their 2022 rematch.

However, Whittaker thinks the "wake-up call" against Du Plessis will lead to positive results. He said he plans to fix some aspects of his MMA game that "caught up" to him in the fight - especially since he said he hopes to return to the Octagon in November. He mentioned Roman Dolidze as a potential opponent.

"I do believe that this was the kick in the ass I needed to really take me to that next level," Whittaker said. "It helped me align a few of my goals - goals of titles and winning and beating Izzy and now Dricus. I want to finish my career never losing again."