Robert Whittaker is siding with the betting underdog in the UFC 335 main event.
BMF champion Charles Oliveira (37-11 MMA, 25-11 UFC) welcomes Diego Lopes (28-8 MMA, 7-3 UFC) to the lightweight division Dec. 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Paramount+).
Whittaker thinks Lopes is too well rounded for Oliveira, despite the champion being the slight favorite.
"I love this fight, especially for Diego Lopes," Whittaker said on his "MMArcade Podcast." "I think he gets it done. I love Charles Oliveira like everybody else, but I don't think Charles will have the ground superiority that he always has. And if it comes to toughness, guts, and walking people down, Lopes has to be the favorite for that."
Oliveira put on one of his best performances when he dominated
Max Holloway on the ground to capture the BMF title at UFC 326. Whittaker explains why he doesn't see Oliveira doing the same to Lopes.
"I think what Diego Lopes has that Max didn't is Diego Lopes has a bottom offensive jiu-jitsu game," Whittaker added. "That changes a lot of things. I never thought Max was going to get off the ground if he gets placed on his back. I thought the fight was going to happen on his feet, in the scrambles, in the transition, up against the fence, pushing away – that hemisphere.
"Once Max's back was on the mat, I thought that's that round, and we'll go to the next one, start again. Lopes, obviously he's got his guillotine you've got to be aware of. It's there. But I think offensively he's dangerous enough to create openings to get back to his feet because physically he is huge. He is very strong. I think if Charles isn't having his way on the ground, and it becomes a slugfest, Lopes is a slugfest-loving guy. He's built for it."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Robert Whittaker: Diego Lopes built for slugfests, beats Charles Oliveira at UFC 335
