Thankfully, it didn’t take long for Robert Whittaker to find a new opponent after Paulo Costa withdrew from their April 17 UFC headliner due to illness.
Kelvin Gastelum has stepped up to face Whittaker in the event, for which a location has yet to be announced. The news was first reported by MMA Junkie.
Whittaker is coming into the main event fight on two straight wins after losing the middleweight title to Israel Adesanya. Prior to that, he’d been on a nine-fight winning streak.
Gastelum has already fought once this year, coming out of a three-fight skid to win a decision against Ian Heinisch at February’s UFC 258. During his time in the UFC, the TUF 17 winner has defeated names like Michael Bisping, Tim Kennedy, and Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza.
Whittaker and Gastelum were originally supposed to fight back in 2019 at UFC 234, where Gastelum was scheduled to fight Whittaker for the title. However, hours before the event, Whittaker was forced to withdraw to undergo emergency surgery for a hernia. Fans were hoping to see this fight finally materialize one day, and this unexpected twist seems like it’ll make it happen.
Whittaker vs. Gastelum will take place on Saturday, April 17.
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