Kelvin Gastelum gives his prediction for Robert Whittaker vs. Israel Adesanya title fight

At UFC 234, Robert Whittaker was set to defend his middleweight title against Kelvin Gastelum. It would have been the first time that the Aussie would have defended his belt. However, on the day of the fight, the champ had to pull out of the contest due to health reasons.

Fast forward to UFC 236, and in the co-main event, Gastelum was fighting for the interim title against Israel Adesanya. Ultimately, Adesanya beat Gastelum by unanimous decision in what is a front runner for the fight of the year.

Now, Israel Adesanya will take on Robert Whittaker for the undisputed middleweight title. The fight is expected to take place in October at a stadium in Australia. It will be a big fight for the Oceanic region.

Given Kelvin Gastelum has fought Adesanya and prepared to fight Whittaker, he recently shared his prediction for the fight.

Kelvin Gastelum Prediction:

https://twitter.com/KelvinGastelum/status/1138142433110310914

“It’s a hard one but Israel has my respect! He really stepped up when I couldn’t! (A mistake I will never let happen again.) and showed a lot of heart and so I think he will pull it off and it will set up a rematch between him and I when I win my fight as well.” — Kelvin Gastelum on Twitter responding to a fan question.

Robert Whittaker last fought back at UFC 225 where he beat Yoel Romero by decision, for the second time in a row. The 28-year-old is 20-4 as a pro and undefeated at middleweight.  Israel Adesanya, meanwhile, is 17-0 as a pro and 6-0 in the UFC with notable wins over Kelvin Gastelum, Anderson Silva, Brad Tavares, among others.

Who do you think will win the fight between Robert Whittaker and Israel Adesanya this fall? Sound off in the comments section, PENN Nation!

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 6/10/2019.