By FCF Staff

Following his loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 308, in which he suffered a gruesome dental injury, Robert Whittaker is starting to plan his Octagon return.

The former middleweight champ faced Chimaev at the October 26th card, and was submitted with a face crank in the opening round. Initially, it was feared Whittaker had suffered a broken jaw. But, eventually Whittaker confirmed his jaw was not broken, although, he had lost multiple teeth.

More recently, the Australian fighter discussed a timeline for his return during an episode of his podcast (quotes via MMA Fighting.com).

“I’m going to give a bit of time. I’m not going to rush into the next fight, because there are some things I want to address,” Whittaker said “… I’m probably looking to return in June. June-ish? End of May? I don’t know. We’ll play with the dates next year. …”

“I’m 34 in December,’ Whittaker continued. “I still have, I feel like some tricks up my sleeve. I still have some goals that I want to hit. Like I said, I am building some new skills. But that’s just how I look at things. Every obstacle and setback just makes me stronger, it makes the comeback better. I’m looking forward to getting back in there. I’m enjoying training. I’m excited for the next, what I could be.”

Prior to facing Chimaev, Whittaker (26-8) had won consecutive fights over Paulo Costa and Ikram Aliskerov. The renowned middleweight has gone 3-2 in his last 5 contests.

Currently, Whittaker is ranked #4 in the UFC’s middleweight division.