Robert Whittaker bled into his head-set during his post-fight interview.- The Australian fighter had just beaten
Darren Till on "Fight Island " Sunday, but had his head sliced open in the fifth round after Till landed a nasty elbow strike. - "You know when you get a cut and you feel the warmth down your shoulders, it's so gross," Whittaker said.
FIGHT ISLAND — Robert Whittaker bled heavily into his headset when he gave a post-fight interview after being sliced open by an elbow strike during his win over Darren Till on Sunday.
Whittaker edged closer to another
Whittaker landed 100 of his 188 strike attempts, scored one knockdown, and succeeded with two of 13 takedown attempts.
Till, meanwhile, landed 50 of 108 strikes, including one nasty elbow in the fifth and final round that split the side of Whittaker's head open, causing him to bleed all over his face for a long while afterward.
Even in the post-fight interview, Whittaker's head seemed to fill the headset with blood, leaking down the front of his chest.
"That fight was so stressful," said Whittaker, following the high-octane, 25-minute, chess match. "I hope the fans and everybody can appreciate it.
"For me, it was one of the most technical fights I ever had to fight. Stand-up wise we were both feinting, know each other's strengths, I blitzed him in the first round and he caught me so I didn't do that again.
"It was such a dynamic fight, things went his way than my way," he said. "The takedowns got me across the line in the end."
On the elbow strike, which caused him so much damage, Whittaker said: "The cut was just a cut … it didn't rock me or anything. Just bled. You know when you get a cut and you feel the warmth down your shoulders, it's so gross."
The win saw Whittaker advance his record to 21 wins (nine knockouts, five submissions, and seven decisions) against five losses.
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