He's been sparring with one of the biggest names in Australian fighting, and now Orange Muay Thai fighter Charlie Bubb is eyeing off a switch to UFC as he looks behind our shores.
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With Whittaker set to line up against former Muay Thai kickboxer Darren Till late next month as the main event for UFC FIght Night 174, the half-Aussie, half-Kiwi fighter enlisted the help of Bubb to help train for the event.
It's a massive rap on Bubb's ability to be standing in at training for a main-card UFC fight, and in the three sessions the duo have had together, Bubb said he's had his eyes opened to a world beyond Muay Thai - a world he's been considering entering for a while.
"It's been ever second weekend and it's definitiely getting better ... I'm hoping to have one more session before the fight," he said.
"I've been talking to Rob's team and they've said if I ever want to make the switch I'm welcome to go back with them which is really good, I've got my foot in the door there now."
He said training with Whittaker was a bit surreal to begin with.
"He was really nice and friendly, but I got into the ring a bit and I said 'woah this is Rob Whittaker' and froze a bit, but once I landed that first hit it's like he's just another dude," Bubb said.
"It's like sparring with one of the boys, when you land a hit he wants to hit back harder and so on."
While world number one Bubb is still desperate to compete for the World Boxing Championship Muay Thai title - a fight he was supposed to have on July 4 in the United Kingdom - he's beginning to look beyond his own backyard.
The July 4 fight was scrapped due to coronavirus concerns, which has derailed a bunch of fights for the Orange-born fighter this year.
"Disappointing's an understatement ... a lot of the hard work and ground I made last year has gone down the drain," he said.
However, he said it's given him a chance to "reevaluate where my goals are at".
"I want to be one of the best fighters Australia's ever had, so I don't want to take it year-by-year like I have been, I want to think more five or 10 years down the track," he said.
Chasing that dream would likely involve a switch to UFC, something training with Whittaker has made a realistic goal.
"I took last year for granted, had all these fights without really engaging with it or enjoying what I was doing it ... so if there's another fight on I've just got to enjoy it 100 per cent," he said.
Bubb also used the time off to add to his fitness - still sparring with Jack Littlefield but also doing more weights and running a marathon to Manildra.
As for when he's next fight will be?
"Not a clue."
"New Zealand's back up and could be an option, I've spoken to a few promoters but no-one really knows what's happening," he said.
" Muay Thai's not as big as the UFC so we can't survive without crowds.
These are unprecedented times and no-one really knows where to go from here."
He does have a rematch against Toby Smith which he'd been "holding out on for a while" after losing to him three years ago, but no date has been set for that bout.
Bubb has one more session with Whittaker before his July 26 fight, but is hoping to stick around with Whittaker for a little bit longer.
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