BROOKLYN, NEW YORK - APRIL 06: Robert Whittaker interacts with media during the UFC press conference inside Barclays Center on April 6, 2018 in Brooklyn, New York. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker talks his upcoming fight with Yoel Romero at UFC 225 and possibly getting pay-per-view points.

For UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker, 2017 was a year full of spectacular changes. After defeating a tough Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, Whittaker went on to fight for and win the interim middleweight championship against Yoel Romero in a ‘Fight of the Night’ awarded performance at UFC 213.

Winning the belt immediately set up a title unification bout with former champion Michael Bisping, who had been recuperating from a knee injury. However, unification would have to wait as Whittaker suffered his own knee injury in the fight against Romero.

Needing surgery, Whittaker couldn’t compete for the rest of the year and had to watch Bisping put his title on the line against a returning Georges St-Pierre. In a shocking turn of events, St-Pierre defeated Bisping in their fight at UFC 217 and became the man Whittaker was now poised to unify the title against.

Sadly, St-Pierre vacated the title after revealing a fight worse than any inside the Octagon. The champion was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and would not be healthy enough to continue fighting. For Whittaker, this meant that he would be considered the undisputed champion of the middleweight division.

After his initial setback, Whittaker prepared for his first title defense against Luke Rockhold at UFC 221. Whittaker wouldn’t make it to the fight after dealing with a nasty staph infection, so he was replaced by Romero. Romero defeated Rockhold with a vicious knockout, setting up a second showdown with Whittaker.

Now, free of injury and illness, Whittaker looks forward to defending his title for the first time. Speaking backstage to media at UFC 223, the champion talked about his rematch with Romero.

“It was a fun first fight full of action. I think the fans, most of all, are gonna be excited for it,” said Whittaker. “As far as I’m concerned, I have 25 minutes to finish this guy. I have a very good feeling about it.”

Fighting someone for the second time, especially after beating them, may seem like an easy task, but for Whittaker, nothing has really changed. Romero is still as dangerous as he was when the pair first met in 2017.

“I think this fight is 50/50,” said Whittaker. “He hits like a truck. He’s got the best wrestling probably in MMA. It’s 50/50. It always is when you step inside that Octagon.

“The essence of fighting is always the same. I’m gonna go in there and just give it my absolute everything. I’m gonna go to war with Yoel Romero. He’s a tough guy and I want to try to stack all the chips in my favor many weeks before that.”

Despite headlining his third event in the UFC, the upcoming card in Chicago has uncovered a new perk for Whittaker. Whittaker will have the opportunity to earn pay-per-view points, which are a percentage of the amount of pay-per-views purchased. Although not finalized yet, UFC 225 is shaping up nicely with some solid fights that are bound to garner the attention of many.

Also on the card is an interim welterweight title fight between Rafael dos Anjos and the brash Colby “Chaos” Covington, who has made more enemies than allies in the company as of late. Whittaker doesn’t mind sharing the card with Covington as he sees a great opportunity to get more eyes on the card.

“I think that’s great. It’s a pay-per-view card, a pay-per-view event. Anyone that can bring attention to the pay-per-view, obviously, I’m all for,” said Whittaker. “The things Colby says is hilarious. You gotta laugh. It’s so bad, it’s funny.”

Sharing a card with colorful figures in the UFC is one way to earn pay-per-view points, but Whittaker hopes the promotion steps up its effort to ensure he obtains them.

“I hope they put animal fights on. I want the pay-per-view to go through the roof. I wanna see monster trucks, I wanna see car races, I wanna see everything,” joked Whittaker. “Let’s stack it up. I’m pro pay-per-view.”

UFC 225 is set for June 9 in Chicago at the United Center.