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MELBOURNE, Australia – Kelvin Gastelum is declaring himself UFC middleweight champion after Robert Whittaker was forced to withdraw from the UFC 234 main event on short notice.

After issuing a classy message to Whittaker (20-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC) following his withdrawal from UFC 234 due to a serious abdominal issue that required “emergency surgery,” Gastelum (16-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) showed up backstage at the event with a title over his shoulder.

“This is my belt,” Gastelum said backstage at UFC 234. “I earned this. I showed up, traveled thousands and thousands of miles from home, made the weight. In my world, the wrestling world, if the guy shows up and makes the weight, for some reason cancels the bout, the guy forfeits the match – I win. I am the champion.”

Gastelum said he was “gutted” when he was informed early in the morning that Whittaker had been hospitalized and was out of the fight. He said he “started to cry” when he learned the news, and has been picking up the pieces since.

Several fighters volunteered to fight Gastelum on just hours’ notice, but Gastelum said that was never realistic and no alternatives were presented.

“They just pretty much told me that Rob was out of the fight,” Gastelum said. “Weigh-ins happened and there needs to be a process for me to even get a fight. There’s no other way that (Donald) ‘Cowboy’ (Cerrone) or something would be able to step up, just because of commission rules and that process and stuff.”

Gastelum said he spent more than $50,000 on his training camp for UFC 234 and was told that he would be “taken care of” by UFC President Dana White. He said he expects to be fully compensated, but has yet to receive anything.

With the belief that he is the real champion at 185 pounds, Gastelum said he will do whatever the UFC wants next. Whether that’s fighting the winner of Israel Adesanya vs. Anderson Silva at UFC 234 or rebooking the fight with Whittaker, he said his next bout will serve as a title defense.

“Hopefully Rob heals up great, I wish him a speedy recovery and when he heals up maybe he can get a crack at my title.”

“This was the hardest camp of my life, so for them to rip this opportunity from me, I ain’t going to have it,” Gastelum said. “I’m not going home empty handed. I promised my people I was going to go home with some hardware and here I am. I’m going to go home with the belt. Hopefully Rob heals up and I’ll give him a crack at the title.”

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