Four years before Rob Wilkinson captured PFL championship gold, his path crossed with a debuting Israel Adesanya in what would ultimately be Wilkinson`s last fight under the UFC banner.
A significant difference between these two career moments was the weight class. After his UFC contract concluded, Wilkinson moved up to light-heavyweight and has since achieved considerable success. Following a two-year hiatus from competition due to the coronavirus pandemic, he joined the PFL and emerged victorious in their 2022 season at 205 pounds.
Now, he is competing once again in the PFL World Tournament, vying for the $500,000 prize, and is set to be a key figure in the promotion`s expansion into Australia. He is scheduled to face UFC and Bellator veteran Phil Davis in the opening round of the new format, believing he is tackling the toughest challenge right at the start.
Grueling Weight Cut Preceded Israel Adesanya Fight
Recounting the experience, Rob Wilkinson detailed the extreme difficulty of making the middleweight limit. While his initial UFC fight also required a short-notice cut, he described the weight cut for the Israel Adesanya fight at UFC 221 as the most brutal of his career.
Wilkinson explained, “I began fighting at middleweight when I was just 19 years old. I was lifting weights heavily back then while also trying to cut weight. For my final fight against `Izzy` [Adesanya] in the UFC, I had to drop approximately 30 pounds in only five days, and I wasn`t using a dietician or professional specialist to assist me.”
He continued, “I was essentially relying on what I had done previously, and in that fight, I distinctly felt unable to recover. I gassed out very early on. I had no energy whatsoever, and after that fight, I made the firm decision that I would never attempt to make middleweight again and would move up.”
“After being released from the UFC, I took some time off and realized it was an opportune moment to add a bit more muscle so I wouldn`t be an undersized light-heavyweight, as a 20-pound jump is substantial. However, I started taking kickboxing fights weighing around 210 pounds and felt significantly better, confirming it would be my new home.”
Israel Adesanya Taunted Wilkinson Over Weight Issues
At the ceremonial weigh-ins for UFC 221 in 2018, held on stage before a large arena crowd, Wilkinson`s struggle was visibly apparent. He had noticeable difficulty climbing the few steps onto the stage and initially missed the allowed 186-pound limit before successfully weighing in using the towel.
Reflecting on the severe nature of those past cuts, Wilkinson stated, “When I compare them to what I do now, those cuts were pretty bad. They were much… I hate to think about the methods I used to cut weight; it was a difficult, miserable time, and my mind was entirely focused on making weight, not even the fight itself.”
He recalled the intense anxiety: “I was so stressed about it… I remember at that event [UFC 221], Yoel Romero and Luke Rockhold were fighting in the main event, and Yoel Romero had less weight to lose than me but still missed weight. To be honest, that was probably the smarter choice; he likely thought, `I won`t make weight, but at least I`ll be able to win the fight.`”
“I had to strip completely naked. I could barely walk to the scales and was essentially leaning on my coach the whole time just to remain standing… I vividly remember facing off against `Izzy` because the face-off happened immediately after.”
“Izzy was talking a bit during the face-off; he could see how depleted I was, saying I was `messed up` and had no time left to recover. We had less than 24 hours to rehydrate before the fight, a shorter window, and he could tell that. My sole thought at the time was, `Just be quiet, I desperately need to go drink some water!`”
