Yoel Romero News

Vadim Nemkov vs. Yoel Romero
Vadim Nemkov

Bellator 297: Pros react after Vadim Nemkov defeats Yoel Romero

Zain Bando - June 16, 2023

Tonight, the light heavyweight main event featured champion Vadim Nemkov taking on Yoel Romero at Bellator 297 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Ill. After a delay to begin the Bellator 297 preliminary portion, the card cruised through with five fights in a little over an hour, plus the highly-anticipated three-main card fights to lead into the main event. Nemkov entered the contest 8-0 in Bellator with three finishes by KO/TKO, as his most recent win came against Corey Anderson back in November, which also took place in Chicago.

Sergio Pettis vs. Patricio Pitbull
Vadim Nemkov

Bellator 297 Weigh-in Results

Zain Bando - June 15, 2023

Bellator returns to the Windy City Friday night for Bellator 297 with two world title fights to top the bill from Wintrust Arena. This is the promotion’s second trip back to Chicago, Ill., in less than a year, as Bellator 288 took place last November from the same venue. Former UFC middleweight title challenger and interim champion Yoel Romero puts his two-fight win streak on the line against current Bellator light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov in the Bellator 297 main event, who defends his title in Chicago again.

Vadim Nemkov

WATCH | Vadim Nemkov has virtual face-off with Yoel Romero as 'Soldier of God' misses presser due to fear of heights

Josh Evanoff - June 14, 2023

Bellator light-heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov had a unique staredown with Yoel Romero today. The Russian has been out of the cage since his rematch with Corey Anderson last October. At Bellator 288, Vadim Nemkov scored a unanimous decision win over ‘Overtime’ to retain his light-heavyweight title. That was a huge win for the champion, as it set the record for most Bellator title defenses in the division, with three.

Yoel Romero, Israel Adesanya
Yoel Romero

Bellator 297: Yoel Romero says the MMA community ‘knows what happened’ in last title fight appearance

Zain Bando - June 14, 2023

Yoel Romero has not forgotten what happened the last time he competed in Chicago. The 46-year-old Cuban light heavyweight was on the wrong end of a 2018 middleweight title fight with Robert Whittaker, a fight many believed Romero did enough to earn a decision.

Vadim-Nemkov
Vadim Nemkov

Vadim Nemkov vs. Yoel Romero scrapped from Bellator 290,  current champion added to co-main event slot

Josh Evanoff - December 27, 2022

Bellator 290’s main card has lost a champion but gained another. On February 4th, Fedor Emelianenko will fight for the final time against Ryan Bader. The bout is actually a rematch of their prior encounter at Bellator 214. In their January 2019 fight, ‘Darth’ scored a first-round knockout win over the legend.

Ryan Bader, Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor Emelianenko's retirement fight against Ryan Bader to headline Bellator 290 on CBS in February

Josh Evanoff - November 18, 2022

Bellator’s debut on CBS next year has some serious star power. ‘The Last Emperor’ has been out of the cage since his knockout win over Timothy Johnson in October 2021. Following the victory, Emelianenko revealed he would only compete one more time. He subsequently called for a rematch with Ryan Bader.

Yoel Romero, Bellator 266
Yoel Romero

Bellator champion Johnny Eblen discusses a potential fight with Yoel Romero: “I don’t know if that dude’s all natural”

Harry Kettle - September 27, 2022

Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen has given his thoughts on a potential fight against Yoel Romero in the future. This past weekend at Bellator 285 in Dublin, Yoel Romero was able to knock Melvin Manhoef out with a nasty series of elbows to take his current win streak with the promotion up to two. The 45-year-old, known as the ‘Soldier of God’, is still one of the most feared men in the sport – which says a lot about the impact he’s been able to have in the second half of his illustrious career.

Yoel Romero
Melvin Manhoef

Pros react after Yoel Romero TKO's Melvin Manhoef at Bellator 285

Chris Taylor - September 23, 2022

Tonight’s Bellator 285 event was co-headlined by a highly anticipated light heavyweight bout between Yoel Romero and Melvin Manhoef. Romero (15-6 MMA) was returning to action for the first time since scoring a TKO victory over Alex Polizzi this past May at Bellator Paris. That victory had snapped a four-fight losing skid for ‘The Soldier of God’, as Romero previously suffered a string of decision defeats to Robert Whittaker, Paulo Costa, Israel Adesanya and Phil Davis.

Israel Adesanya, Yoel Romero
Israel Adesanya

Yoel Romero claps back at "pampered" Israel Adesanya for his recent comments: “How many fights does Izzy have that are boring? You see?”

Cole Shelton - September 21, 2022

Yoel Romero has fired back at Israel Adesanya. Adesanya recently looked back on a low point in his career, which was the Romero fight, and put much of the blame on the now Bellator fighter. That fight served as the main event of UFC 248 and resulted in what many fans and analysts refer to as a snooze fest.

Yoel Romero, Bellator 266
Melvin Manhoef

Yoel Romero reveals plans to defeat Melvin Manhoef, then search for Bellator champ-champ status: "My goals are still the same"

Josh Evanoff - September 15, 2022

Bellator light-heavyweight contender Yoel Romero has some big plans for 2023. ‘Soldier of God’ has been out of action since his knockout win over Alex Polizzi in May. The victory was an important one for the Cuban, as it was his first win in the Bellator cage. Romero had previously lost by decision to Phil Davis in his September 2021 debut.

Israel Adesanya, Yoel Romero
UFC

Israel Adesanya reflects on Yoel Romero fight as the lowest point of his career: "That was the worst for me"

Josh Evanoff - August 26, 2022

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya views his fight with Yoel Romero as the lowest moment of his career. ‘The Last Stylebender’ met ‘Soldier of God’ in the main event of UFC 248 in March 2020. The headliner was set to be the first title defense for the recently-crowned champion Adesanya. Despite high expectations heading in, the matchup wasn’t a thriller as fans hoped.

Yoel-Romero
UFC

Yoel Romero responds after Conor McGregor vows to model the second half of his career after the “Mad Cubano”

Harry Kettle - August 22, 2022

Yoel Romero has responded to Conor McGregor after the Irishman praised his style and longevity in mixed martial arts. While he may not be the most conventional fighter in the world, Yoel Romero is certainly unique. The 45-year-old has incredible knockout power, amazing durability, a great wrestling pedigree and so much more – which is why he’s still considered to be a top star for Bellator despite being in his mid-40s.

Yoel Romero
Yoel Romero

Bellator 280 Results: Yoel Romero TKO's Alex Polizzi (Video)

Chris Taylor - May 6, 2022

Today’s Bellator 280 event is co-headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Yoel Romero and Alex Polizzi. Romero (13-6 MMA) will be looking to snap a four-fight losing skid when he takes to the cage this evening in Paris. ‘The Soldier of God’ made his Bellator debut last September, dropping a split decision to Phil Davis. The setback was preceded by three straight decision losses under the UFC banner.

Yoel-Romero
Gegard Mousasi

Yoel Romero has one stipulation for a potential fight with Bellator champion Gegard Mousasi

Harry Kettle - May 5, 2022

Yoel Romero is interested in taking on Gegard Mousasi in Bellator – but only if the middleweight championship is on the line. While he may be on a four-fight losing streak, Yoel Romero still seems to be one of the most popular figures in mixed martial arts. This weekend, he’ll return to the Bellator cage in Paris for his second appearance with the promotion as he takes on Alex Polizzi.

Yoel Romero, Bellator 266
Melvin Manhoef

Yoel Romero receives new opponent for Bellator 280 after Melvin Manhoef suffers injury while apprehending three burglars

Harry Kettle - May 2, 2022

Yoel Romero has received a new opponent for Bellator 280 following the recent withdrawal of Melvin Manhoef. While he may now be entering his mid-40s, Yoel Romero is still one of the most feared fighters out there – largely due to the reputation he’s been building throughout the course of his time in mixed martial arts.

Yoel Romero, Bellator 266
Melvin Manhoef

Yoel Romero makes Bellator return in May against Melvin Manhoef

Josh Evanoff - February 10, 2022

Yoel Romero has a name and a date for his return to the Bellator cage. The ‘Soldier of God’ signed to the promotion in December 2020 to much fanfare. Romero was a staple of the UFC’s middleweight promotion for nearly a decade. Along the way, he fought in four titles bouts, most recently against Israel Adesanya at UFC 248.

Yoel Romero, Bellator 266
Yoel Romero

Yoel Romero could drop down to middleweight and face the winner of Mousasi-Vanderford for the belt, says Scott Coker

Cole Shelton - September 19, 2021

Yoel Romero might be getting another title shot off a loss. Romero made his Bellator debut on Saturday night in the main event of Bellator 266 where he suffered a split decision loss to Phil Davis. Although one judge had it for Romero, most thought it was a dominant win for Davis to spoil Romero’s promotional debut.

Yoel Romero, Bellator 266
Phil Davis

Pros react after Phil Davis defeats Yoel Romero at Bellator 266

Chris Taylor - September 18, 2021

Tonight’s Bellator 266 event was headlined by a light heavyweight bout featuring Yoel Romero taking on Phil Davis. Romero (13-6 MMA) was returning to action for the first time since suffering a unanimous decision loss to Israel Adesanya for the UFC’s middleweight championship in March of 2020. That setback had marked Yoel’s third in a row, as ‘The Soldier of God’ had previously been outpointed by Paulo Costa and Robert Whittaker.