Rob Whittaker says he's excited to put a stop to the hype around American Jared Cannonier, who stands in his way of a rematch with UFC middleweight king Israel Adesanya.
Just three months after beating Englishman Darren Till, the Australian is back on Fight Island to take on Cannonier in UFC 254 on Sunday morning AEDT.
Cannonier is relatively new to the division, dropping a massive 50kg through his career, but hasn't fought in over a year after undergoing pec surgery.
Still, a lot of the buzz in the MMA community has been about him next taking on Adesanya, but Whittaker is standing in the way of that.
The 29-year-old wants another crack at the rangy Kiwi, who took his world title a year ago in Melbourne.
Whittaker says he's used to being a "sleeper" and not getting the attention of others.
"I've always been the dark horse, I've always been the sleeper," Whittaker said in a teleconference from Abu Dhabi.
"I had that period where people weren't sleeping on me so much and as soon as I lost a fight they started sleeping on me again.
"I don't mind cause I like upsetting people - I like derailing the hype train, it's fun."
Whittaker said he hadn't looked deep into Cannonier's fight history, because he didn't care.
"I don't care if he's had 400 knockout wins, I haven't even looked it up," he said.
"He's not ready for me because I know what I can bring to the table - I don't think he's at my level."
He expects Cannonier to bring a heavy punch, but wants to "hurt him" early, with the fight over three rounds rather than the regular five required for UFC headliners and championship bouts.
"He's a tough dude but skill-set wise I'm better than him across the board and I'm going to lead this dance," Whittaker said.
After a series of injuries and illness, Whittaker says he feels in top shape physically and mentally.
"I had a rough patch but I'm in good health and I feel like I'm in a really good place and am hitting that balance across the board with a lot of different things."
