Yoel Romero News

Tom Taylor - June 8, 2018

Earlier this morning, Yoel Romero missed weight for his UFC 225 middleweight title fight with divisional champ Robert Whittaker, tipping the scales one pound above the 185-pound limit for middleweight title fights. He was then given two additional hours to weigh in. Almost two hours later, Romero took to the scale for a second time, and unfortunately, he once again missed, tipping the scales at 185.2 pounds — just 0.2 above the mark. He will not be given another chance to weigh in, per the rules of the commission in Illinois.

Tom Taylor - June 7, 2018

This weekend, in the main event of UFC 225, Yoel Romero will battle Robert Whittaker for the UFC middleweight title. From the sounds of it, this might not be the only title fight in Romero’s future. Speaking at a UFC 225 media scrum, Romero was asked about the possibility of moving up to the 205-pound light heavyweight division for a battle with divisional champion Daniel Cormier, a fellow Olympic wrestler. Apparently, he’s into the idea.

Tom Taylor - June 1, 2018

For a time, Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping and long-time middleweight contender Yoel Romero shared one of the most intense rivalries in MMA. That was back when Bisping sat on the middleweight throne, and Romero stood out as the top contender in the division. While the pair once shared a truly fiery rivalry, that rivalry seems to have fizzled out now that Bisping has retired.

Chris Taylor - April 8, 2018

VIDEO | Yoel Romero has a message for Michael Bisping Yoel Romero will square off with Robert Whittaker for the promotions undisputed middleweight title in the main event of UFC 225 in Chicago on June 9.

Justin Golightly - March 19, 2018

While it hasn’t been long since Robert Whittaker first defeated Yoel Romero at UFC 213, it seems like forever ago. A lot has went down, but the more things change, the more they stay the same. Whittaker still holds the UFC middleweight title and has been waiting to see the rightful challenger rise to meet him after his injury. It just happens to be Romero, who is expected to be just as if not more dangerous at UFC 225 than their last encounter. “[Yoel] Romero is a hard fight. It was a war the first time. It’s definitely up there as one of my hardest fights to date, one of the hardest fights mentally due to getting injured in the first round and having to get through it all. He’s such a tough competitor, he’s such a good athlete and such a good fighter.”

Tom Taylor - March 13, 2018

On March 10, BJPenn.com’s Chris Taylor reported that UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and top contender Yoel Romero will rematch at UFC 225 on June 9 in Chicago, Illinois. Breaking! Per sources Yoel Romero vs Robert Whittaker 2 is a done deal for #UFC225. The title fight rematch is expected to serve as the main event in Chicago!

Chris Taylor - March 11, 2018

Luke Rockhold responds to Yoel Romero’s post-fight antics at UFC 221 Yoel Romero scored a brutal second-round knockout victory over former middleweight champion Luke Rockhold in the headliner of last month’s UFC 221 event in Perth, Australia.

Chris Taylor - March 10, 2018

The octagon will return to Chicago on June 9 for UFC 225. The pay-per-view event will be headlined by a middleweight title fight rematch featuring current title holder Robert Whittaker taking on top division contender Yoel Romero.

Tom Taylor - February 25, 2018

When Yoel Romero knocked out Luke Rockhold in the main event of UFC 221, he earned himself a rematch with reigning middleweight champion Robert Whittaker. While some fans felt Romero didn’t deserve this opportunity on the basis of his weigh-in flub, UFC President Dana White confirmed the plan was indeed a Whittaker-Romero rematch. While we have known this rematch is the plan for a few weeks, the date and venue of the rematch have remained nebulous. Whittaker is hoping he can fix that.

Justin Golightly - February 24, 2018

After Yoel Romero took out Luke Rockhold at UFC 221, there was no doubt that he deserved a title shot. Although, some did criticize the decision by the UFC to still award Romero with a chance at the belt after he missed weight. Former UFC fighter Jay Hieron was recently asked about the scenario and says Romero was already punished and no one else is as deserving. “[Yoel Romero] got penalized. He’s not all happy right now. He got 30-percent of his purse taken, which is a lot. He has the belt – on his own stomach, in his own house right now, he could be interim belt champion, which he’s not. He’s penalized. But you go out and put a performance on like that, you can’t argue that. He should definitely get the shot. I get it. You’re in a different country. You’re in a totally different time frame. You’ve retained water, so it’s already not going as planned. I get it. He probably thought he could make weight.”

Justin Golightly - February 21, 2018

Yoel Romero is on cloud nine after his finish of Luke Rockhold. All signs point to a rematch between him and Robert Whittaker for the middleweight title going down, the big question now is where will it happen? The Chicago card in June has been talked about, but now it looks like Miami is a real possibility. With their big Cuban population, that could mean a huge draw for a Romero main event. It’s an idea that Romero is really excited about. Who knows, maybe Joey Diaz might be in attendance? “I don’t have an idea [of the date of my title shot against Robert Whittaker]. Maybe July? I don’t know when. I hear he’s sick, he’s feeling no good, he’s feeling very bad. I pray for him. I’m waiting. I’m waiting for him. Thank you God, [my leg is] good. I think a lot about [how I’m able to keep this up at my age]. I try to stay [living] a very clean life and very quiet, but I think this is God. Believe me, I think it’s God. It’s God.”

Justin Golightly - February 20, 2018

It has been nearly 10 days since Yoel Romero finished Luke Rockhold with an uppercut so brutal that we’re still talking about it. We’re also still talking about the kiss he landed on Rockhold’s cheek as well at UFC 221. Originally it was thought that it was nothing more than a sportsmanlike gesture, but Romero had the bible on his mind as he called Rockhold a brother and put his lips on his cheek. He was thinking of Judas, who betrayed Jesus with a kiss after The Last Supper. The Soldier of God flipped the allegory in the Octagon that night when he pecked Luke Rockhold, then told the story of their fall on Monday. “Before USADA, every time when [Luke Rockhold] saw me […] he’d say, ‘Hey, what’s up, my man? You want to go out with me? I need a party.’ I’d say, okay, come on, let’s go, no problem. When I [was hanging out] with him, he was like a friend. […] When I had this problem with USADA, he and Michael Bisping is the two guys who were talking a lot of [trash] about me. Ok, Bisping is Bisping. I don’t have a relationship with this guy, but with [Rockhold] — You talk like this against me? But God is good. Maybe he was thinking, ‘Ok, this guy is 39-years old. Minimum two years out [with a suspension], he’s 41. Bye, bye Yoel.’ But God is good every time. I’m still here. That’s why the UFC call me and I say, ‘Yes, I want the fight’ and I tried to get down my current weight.”

Justin Golightly - February 15, 2018

Just four days ago, Yoel Romero overcame the drama of a suspenseful weigh-in ordeal and rose to the occasion in the main event of UFC 221. He shut down former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold and finished him with an uppercut that looked like it was removed from Mortal Kombat. It’s not surprise that current champion Robert Whittaker was watching this fight and keeping an eye on who could be his next opponent. However, he didn’t just watch it, he absolutely dissected it. “[Yoel Romero] was mentioning a back injury earlier, so we can’t be sure if it was the back injury that’s what prevented him from doing his usual explosive, unorthodox movement patters, or it was a gameplan because it worked so well. He stood at perfect range for [Luke] Rockhold, he predicted all his strikes, all his combos. When Rockhold couldn’t kick – cause he always leads the kick, or tries to, doesn’t really set up his kicks too well – he’d check it. When Rockhold would work with his combos – no more than two or three – he’d block him. Then he’d just explode moving forward, landing punches, not overextending too much.”

Tom Taylor - February 15, 2018

Over the weekend, the UFC debuted in Perth, Western Australia with UFC 221. In the main event of this card, a fearsome Yoel Romero took out former champion Luke Rockhold with a brutal barrage of third-round punches. Shortly after the referee waved off the fight, Romero cornered Rockhold for a brief post-fight embrace – and a quick peck on the cheek that was promptly immortalized as an MMA meme.

Justin Golightly - February 14, 2018

Everyone is still talking about Yoel Romero’s finish — and his post-fight kiss — of Luke Rockhold from UFC 221. Despite missing weight, the consensus seems that he’ll still get the title shot against Robert Whittaker. After already being fined and losing out on a win bonus, he has been punished and did win the fight. It’s hard to argue who else would be deserving of a shot, but former champion Chris Weidman thinks it is him. Michael Bisping had a chuckle over it and broke down the fight he believes the UFC will do. “You know what’s funny? Chris Weidman, he’s saying that he should get a title shot. I think that’s kind of laughable, Chris. I don’t want to get into a whole beef with Chris Weidman, but you did get knocked out in three of your last four fights. I don’t think that makes you eligible for a title shot. I don’t think he has any case to get a title shot. I think the correct fight — and Dana [White] has announced — [is] Yoel Romero versus Robert Whittaker. I think that’s going to be a different fight. That fight was only six months ago, something like that.

Tom Taylor - February 14, 2018

Last weekend, in the main event of the stacked UFC 221, Yoel Romero knocked out Luke Rockhold with a brutal bombardment of third-round punches. In the subsequent moments, Romero pinned a bewildered Rockhold against the cage, and planted a kiss on his cheek. Though Romero’s intention was clearly an act of sportsmanship, the gesture didn’t go over well with former middleweight champion Michael Bisping. Yoel Romero comforts Luke Rockhold with a kiss after #UFC221 pic.twitter.com/mv6IXxqQP7

Tom Taylor - February 11, 2018

On Saturday night, in the headliner of an action-packed UFC 221 card, former Olympic silver medalist Yoel Romero authored one of the finest victories of his incredible career thus far, knocking out former UFC and Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold with a savage third-round volley. With this win, Romero positioned himself at the front of the middleweight contender line, and may well have earned himself a rematch with divisional ruler Robert Whittaker, who he lost a decision to back in July of 2016. While some fans and pundits have argued that Romero shouldn’t be rewarded with a middleweight title shot on the basis of his UFC 221 weigh-in miss – the reason he wasn’t awarded the interim title for his defeat of Rockhold – UFC President Dana White confirmed post-fight that a Whittaker-Romero rematch is indeed the plan.

Tom Taylor - February 11, 2018

Last night, in the main event of UFC 221, former Olympic wrestler Yoel Romero picked up one of the best wins of his amazing career thus far, knocking out former UFC and Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold with a brutal, third-round salvo. With this win, Romero positioned himself at the front of the middleweight contender line, and may well have earned himself a rematch with divisional ruler Robert Whittaker, who he lost a decision to back in July of 2016. Shortly after Romero’s win, Whittaker took to Twitter to congratulate his rival in his own language. See Whittaker’s Spanish language post below.