Robert Whittaker is garnering a lot of sympathy online after his submission loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 308 on Saturday. UFC commentator Daniel Cormier shared a graphic photo of Whittaker’s bloodied front teeth pushed completely out of alignment.
Whittaker’s toughness was never questioned, but there was confusion over how quickly he tapped to Chimaev’s chin lock in Round 1 of their co-main event fight. The former UFC middleweight champion frantically tapped with both hands as Chimaev applied a rear-naked choke over Whittaker’s chin. UFC commentators speculated that Whittaker dislocated his jaw with Chimaev confirming he heard a click in his post-fight interview. The injury was more severe than that.
Cormier shared a photo he was sent of Whittaker’s mouth. The image showed his front three teeth out of place and facing the wrong direction. The gruesome photo is circulating heavily. Just two instances of the photo shared online generated more than 500,00 views in under an hour.
“They showed me the photo,” Chimaev said when speaking to reporters at the UFC 308 post-fight press conference. “I felt something was wrong with his chin when I pushed it. I feel bad. I didn’t mean to break his chin, but it’s my work. If I make someone feel pain, it makes me I’m happy.”
Chimaev called for a UFC middleweight title shot after becoming the first person to submit Whittaker in the UFC. Chimaev improved his perfect professional record to 14-0 after successively beating two former UFC champions.