ROBERT Whittaker has described punching into the controversial body of Yoel Romero as like hitting steel, saying: “He doesn’t feel like a middleweight”.

Only hours after being discharged from a Chicago Emergency Ward, Whittaker told The Daily Telegraph how Romero was like nobody else in the division.

Asked about the fighter who dropped him twice on Saturday night, the Aussie said: “He didn’t feel like a middleweight.

“I know you probably agree he doesn’t look like a middleweight and I can tell you he doesn’t feel like one either.

“Except for my face, all the damage on my body is from me hitting him.”

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Whittaker also squared off against Romero at UFC 213 in Las Vegas last July, but said the fighter he fought Saturday night was completely different.

“This time, he felt like steel,” the Sydney striker said. “I was punching and kicking him but it wasn’t doing any damage.

“He was walking forward through everything.

“It was weird.

“My shots just weren’t stopping him. I’ve fought everyone in the middleweight division — including Romero previously — and I’ve never seen anything like that.”

Asked why Romero might feel “like steel”, Whittaker shrugged: “Dunno. Maybe you get stronger as you get older.

“I assume that’s what happens when you get to your forties ...”

media_camera Rob Whittaker said Romero just kept walking forward. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Back in 2016, Romero was suspended for six months after testing positive to Ibutamoren, a growth hormone secretagogue.

While he claimed the positive was the result of a tainted substance, his hulking physique has continually been the source of much debate — including from former middleweight champs Michael Bisping and Chris Weidman.

Whittaker also explained why he still agreed to fight Romero after the UFC veteran came in overweight for their title fight — albeit by only 90g.

“I didn’t have to take this fight, no,” the champ confirmed. “I could’ve walked away with the show money.

“But I knew there were a lot of Australians who wanted to see me fight.

“I’d come to Chicago to fight, you guys had come to Chicago to watch me fight ... and I wanted to fight.”

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