Robert Whittaker is in good spirits despite brutal jaw injury he suffered at the hands of Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 308.

The former middleweight champion tapped to a nasty face crank from ‘Borz’ in the very first round of their fight at Etihad Arena on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi on Saturday night.

Whittaker tapped to Khamzat’s nasty face crank in the first round of their bout at UFC 308GETTY

An image of ‘The Reaper’s’ disfigured teeth did the rounds on social media in the aftermath of the bout, showing the full extent of the gruesome injury.

Speaking to Red Corner MMA after the fight, the Australian MMA star revealed it wasn’t his jaw that was the issue, rather, his bottom teeth which have always been his ‘Achilles heel’.

“I’m alright, it wasn’t the jaw, it was the teeth. The teeth got pushed in,” Whittaker said.

“I’ve always had loose teeth, and they got looser.”

Speaking about what caused the injury, the former 185lb king said: “It was the face crank. His forearm went straight on the bottom tooth, I didn’t have a moment to turn the head or anything.

“If I didn’t have such vulnerable teeth maybe i would have had another second to turn my head. Or maybe not,” he joked.

“I just got caught in a bad position and the rest is history.

“My bottom teeth, they’re vulnerable. It’s my Achilles heel. I’ve had them pushed in before when I fought Dricus [Du Plessis], and they’ve never really recovered…

“It’s from an injury when I was young.”

It comes after Whittaker released his first statement since the fight, where he clarified that he only had damaged teeth and not a broken jaw.

The Reaper’s bottom teeth took serious damageUFC

Whittaker revealed his teeth have always been his Achilles HeelRed Corner MMA

“It’s a tough gig sometimes but that’s the business,” Whittaker wrote on Instagram.

“Big congratulations to Khamzat, he was the better man tonight and that’s all there is to it. I felt great, everything was on point and I was ready. My jaw is good, but my teeth were moved in. It’s a good excuse to fix them properly now.”

“I’m disappointed, but I come back better from every setback and every challenge so this is no different,” Whittaker added.

“I want to thank my team and everyone who supported me to get here. Time to go spend time with the family for a bit. Be back soon.”

He was in good spirits and said his jaw was in good shape

Whittaker was not in a good way after the defeat and shared a photo of his gruesome injury with UFC colour commentator Daniel Cormier, which was then shown to the cameras by DC.

“Khamzat Chimaev broke his tooth,” Cormier said about the photo.

“Literally dislocated his jaw in a matter of two seconds. It was unbelievable.”

Meanwhile, Chimaev says he felt Whittaker’s jaw go as soon as he locked in the submission.

“Before I came in here, they showed it to me [the picture],” said Chimaev in his post-fight press conference.

“I felt something was wrong with his chin when I pushed it so I feel bad for that.

“I didn’t mean to break somebody’s chin but it is my work to cause somebody pain.

“And make me happy and my family happy. I felt it when I pushed it and it clicked.”