Had middleweight champion Robert Whittaker competed at UFC 234, it could’ve been fatal. But his title fight with Kelvin Gastelum was scrapped at the last minute after abdominal pain he experienced led to a hospital visit – which led to emergency surgery on a collapsed bowel and internal hernia.

Now that he’s out of the hospital and recovering, Whittaker is simply grateful that disaster was averted.

“I’m in good spirits,” Whittaker said late Wednesday night in a video posted to his YouTube channel. “I’m thankful that I still have my health and that they found it before I fought, and I can walk away from this and fight at a later date. My whole thing is I want to heal, train, and then fight. My health comes first. I need to make sure I’m healthy, and then I’ll fight anyone, anywhere.”

While that might be the case, Gastelum and Israel Adesanya are ready to move on. Both Gastelum and Adesanya, who defeated Anderson Silva at UFC 234, have been campaigning to be booked against each other for the undisputed title while Whittaker is sidelined until at least June. Whittaker could be out until August.

That would mean Whittaker, who defeated an overweight Yoel Romero in their rematch last June, would not have technically defended his title in two years since claiming the interim belt vs. Romero in July 2017. Whittaker became undisputed champion only after Georges St-Pierre vacated his title.

Whittaker, however, says he isn’t worried about what happens next. If anything, he seems excited by the possibilities.

“With Anderson and Adesanya just fighting, I don’t know what that does,” Whittaker said. “I don’t know what the UFC is going to make. I’ve never picked a fight. They just line them up, and I beat them, and that’s exactly what I’ve done. I’ve never tip-toed my way to the title. …

“I’m not worried. I don’t know what the UFC want to do with Gastelum and Adesanya now because obviously, I’ve heard a lot of things. How the UFC wants to go about lining up either Gastelum still or Adesanya, or getting them to fight someone before, I think it certainly spices up the division. (Yoel) Romero and (Paulo) Costa have been calling out Adesanya. I know that there’s lifeblood in the division.”

During UFC 234, Gastelum walked around backstage with a title belt draped over his shoulder, declaring himself the UFC champion on the basis that he showed up to fight while Whittaker didn’t. That belt? It was Henry Cejudo’s.

Whittaker found the stunt to be “cute.”

“You know when your kid finds your work belt at home and then he starts wearing it around the house? That’s kind of how I saw the whole thing,” Whittaker said. “It was adorable.

“I feel bad for him that he trained and made the trip out here, and then I couldn’t give it to him. I apologize for that, but obviously my health comes first. It is what it is. … His health was looking a bit shocking, as well. It’s just one of those things. Maybe it was better for both of us.”

For complete coverage of UFC 234, check out the UFC Events section of the site.