Tag: Yoel Romero

Yoel Romero meets Alex Polizzi at Bellator 280 following Melvin Manhoef withdrawal

“The Soldier of God” has a new foe for Bellator’s return to Paris.

[autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] has a new opponent for Bellator 280.

With [autotag]Melvin Manhoef[/autotag] out, Romero (13-6 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) now meets rising light heavyweight [autotag]Alex Polizzi[/autotag] (10-1 MMA, 4-1 BMMA) in a three-round co-main event.

The card takes place May 6 at AccorHotels Arena in Paris with the main card streaming on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.

A Bellator official Saturday confirmed the change to MMA Junkie following an initial report from Dutch outlet Redactie Telesport. The report cited an injury for Manhoef, which it says he sustained in a recent apprehension of three alleged attempted burglars.

The bout was expected to be Manhoef’s final one for Bellator, promotion president Scott Coker told MMA Junkie in an interview prior to its cancellation.

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Romero, 45, signed with Bellator in 2021 and debuted in September of that year against fellow former UFC fighter Phil Davis. The matchup served as the Bellator 266 main event, in which Davis defeated Romero via unanimous decision. After the fight, Romero voiced frustration because he thought the fight was a five-round main event, rather than three. Bellator has since made all main events five rounds, regardless of title status.

Polizzi, 30, enters his short-notice Bellator 280 opportunity on a three-fight winning streak. A former LFA champion, Polizzi has defeated the likes of former Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho and fellow contender Grant Neal among others since he signed with the promotion in 2020. He most recently competed at Bellator 276 in March when he defeated Jose Augusto via submission to cap off an exciting, back-and-forth brawl.

With the change, the Bellator 280 lineup includes:

  • Ryan Bader vs. Cheick Kongo – for heavyweight championship
  • Alex Polizzi vs. Yoel Romero
  • Lorenz Larkin vs. Kyle Stewart
  • Davion Franklin vs. TBA
  • Soren Bak vs. Charlie Leary
  • Gavin Hughes vs. Yves Landu
  • Pedro Carvalho vs. Piotr Niedzielski
  • Gregory Babene vs. Mike Shipman
  • Thibault Gouti vs. Lewis Long
  • Fabacary Diatta def. Jordan Barton
  • Joel Kouadja vs. Nicolo Solli
  • Lucie Bertaud vs. Katarzyna Sadura
  • Bourama Camara vs. Victor Verchere
  • Mathieu Ducios vs. Youcef Ouabbas

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Feb. 7-13)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie from Feb. 7-13.

Yoel Romero vs. Melvin Manhoef co-headlines Bellator Paris on May 6

Yoel Romero will look to notch his first Bellator win when he meets fellow veteran Melvin Manhoef.

[autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] will look to notch his first Bellator win when he meets a fellow veteran in May.

Romero, a former UFC middleweight title challenger, is set to fight [autotag]Melvin Manhoef[/autotag] in the co-main event of Bellator Paris on May 6 at Accor Arena, the promotion announced Thursday.

In his return to light heavyweight, Romero (13-6 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) fell short in his promotional debut when he was edged out by Phil Davis last September at Bellator 266. Romero, 44, now has lost four in a row, with his last win a knockout of Luke Rockhold in February 2018.

Manhoef (32-15-1 MMA, 4-4 BMMA) has won two of his past three bouts since moving back up to 205 pounds. The 45-year-old is coming off a TKO loss to Corey Anderson in the main event of Bellator 251 in November 2020. Prior to that, the former two-time title challenger scored wins over Kent Kauppinen and a first-round TKO of Yannick Bahati.

With the addition, the current Bellator Paris lineup includes:

  • Ryan Bader vs. Cheick Kongo – for heavyweight title
  • Melvin Manhoef vs. Yoel Romero
  • Soren Bak vs. Saul Rogers
  • Gavin Hughes vs. Yves Landu

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22 fights on our MMA wishlist for 2022: Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz 3, Jon Jones, Jorge Masvidal

What are some of your dream matchups for 2022? Here are 22 fights MMA Junkie hopes to see happen in 2022.

Amidst a tumultuous global pandemic there were many grim realities humans had to endure in 2021. One thing was consistently good, however, and that’s combat sports.

Although just five fights of 21 fights from the 2021 MMA wishlist came to fruition, the sport was extremely hot and gave fans many memorable moments. The world leader of MMA – the UFC – had a particularly great year, and that momentum doesn’t seem to be slowing heading into 2022.

It’s not just UFC fights that are taking attention, either. There’s also plenty happening in Bellator, PFL, Eagle FC and many other promotions.

MMA is in a great spot, and with much excitement we present MMA Junkie’s wishlist of 22 fights we’d like to see in 2022.

Bellator 266 salaries: Yoel Romero leads disclosed payouts despite promotional debut loss

Yoel Romero lost his Bellator debut – but was still compensated the highest amount of anyone on the card.

Bellator 266 is in the books and although [autotag]Phil Davis[/autotag] was the victorious half of the main event, he didn’t receive the highest disclosed payout according to the event’s commissioning body.

While Davis (23-6 MMA, 10-3 BMMA) pocketed a $100,000 flat salary for his three-round split decision, his opponent [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (13-6 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) earned $150,000 in defeat. The fight was Romero’s promotional debut with Bellator and his first bout since his UFC departure in 2020.

MMA Junkie acquired a full list of Bellator 266 payouts Wednesday from California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) executive director Andy Foster. The amounts include win and show purses, but do not account for any discretionary bonuses.

Bellator 266 took place Saturday at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. The main card aired on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.

Check out the full list of Bellator 266 payouts below:

Spinning Back Clique: Yoel Romero’s Bellator debut reaction, an MMA Sophie’s choice, and more

Check out this week’s episode of “Spinning Back Clique” covering the biggest topics in MMA.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.

This week, we cover the aftermath of Bellator 266 and UFC Fight Night 192, the retirements of two UFC legends, an unexpected fight announcement, and finally look ahead to UFC 266 on Saturday.

Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Mike Bohn, Danny Segura and Brian “Goze” Garcia debates and discusses these topics with host John Morgan:

  • It was a busy weekend in MMA with both the UFC and Bellator holding events, but it seemed a majority of eyes were on [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag], who ended up losing a decision to Phil Davis in his promotional debut at Bellator 266. After the result, we’re kind of left to wonder, at age 44, did Romero finally show his age? Or are there still big wins ahead for him? What does he have left in the tank?
  • We had 26 bouts to take in on Saturday between the UFC and Bellator, so that’s a lot of athletes who got their hand raised. Even though no new champions were crowned or future title fights secured, who walked away as the star of the night?
  • A couple of UFC and WEC legends called it a career this past week, with both [autotag]Joseph Benavidez[/autotag] and [autotag]Carlos Condit[/autotag] electing to retire. So here’s a Sophie’s choice scenario, but the timing is perfect with the UFC Hall of Fame getting a few new members this week: If you could only place one of them in the Hall of Fame, is it Benavidez or Condit?
  • Speaking of UFC and WEC greats, how about the news from ONE Championship that Demetrious Johnson will have a mixed rules fight with muay Thai legend Rodtang Jitmuangnon? Sounds kind of fun, doesn’t it? What are we thinking here? Should organizations like the UFC be more open to wild ideas like this, or does someone need to be protecting the sanctity of MMA?
  • Finally, it’s a big week for the UFC – International Fight Week, in fact. UFC 266 features a couple of big title fights, the long-awaited return of Nick Diaz, multiple top contenders in action, and more. With all that is going on, what’s the most intriguing storyline of the week?

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Tuesday on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel.

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7 biggest takeaways from UFC Fight Night 192, Bellator 266: Yoel Romero’s debut gets fumbled

Thoughts and analysis of the biggest storylines coming out of UFC Fight Night 192 and Bellator 266, both of which took place Saturday.

What mattered most at UFC Fight Night 192 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and Bellator 266 from the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif.? Here are a few post-fight musings …

Scott Coker voices faith in Yoel Romero after Bellator 266 loss, ponders 5-round main event change

Yoel Romero was frustrated his Bellator 266 main event wasn’t five rounds. Could we see a change? Scott Coker weighs in.

SAN JOSE, Calif. – [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] is 0-1 in Bellator, but promotion president Scott Coker isn’t losing faith in one of his biggest free agent pickups.

On Saturday night, Romero (13-6 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) lost a split decision to Phil Davis in the Bellator 266 main event at SAP Center. After a competitive first two rounds, Romero was taken down and controlled for much of Round 3.

After the event, Coker praised Davis’ victory but also voiced confidence that Romero, former UFC middleweight title challenger, still has more left in the tank at age 44.

“I think that Phil is an amazing fighter, as we all know, and he just delivered another solid performance,” Coker said at a post-fight news conference. “He fought smart. Yoel is still dangerous. If he hits you, it’s over. I think Phil probably felt that power early on, so he tried to stick and move a little bit. He took him down a couple times. I loved the fight. I thought that it was a great fight. I’m telling you, Yoel will be back. This is, to me, his comeback fight. It’s been how long since he fought? We give him another fight, and he’ll be really, really ready for the next one.

“… Anybody that can do what he does. Again, give this guy another camp and another big fight, I think he’s going to come in and start throwing bombs on people. He’s a dangerous individual. You guys saw it. One punch, and it’s going to be over. He’s that guy.”

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Romero mostly has competed at 185 pounds throughout his career. In fact, it had been a decade since he last fought at light heavyweight prior to Saturday. As for what the future holds, Coker would like Romero to continue at 205 pounds but is open to a return to middleweight.

“I’m going to talk to him, because I’d love for him to maybe fight and maybe stay at 205,” Coker said. “Gegard (Mousasi) is going to be busy beginning of next year fighting Austin (Vanderford). If that division opens up, and he wants to go down and fight the winner of that fight, we’d love to do that, too. We have a lot of exciting options for Romero, and I’m excited to put them all together.”

At the conclusion of the main event, Romero indicated he was either frustrated with or surprised by his main event not being five rounds. Unlike the UFC, Bellator has three-round non-title fight headliners. Coker indicated a change could come to Bellator’s system in the near future, but it would have to be a permanent one.

“We just didn’t want to make a change,” Coker said. “I think maybe at some point we’ll see it. I just know that once we make that decision, it’s not going to go back. I heard that was something that was in his mind, too. I can’t blame him. He’s been fighting five rounds a lot in his career. This was a three-round fight, and maybe next time he’ll be in a five-round fight.”

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Bellator 266 results: Phil Davis spoils Yoel Romero’s debut, earns split decision

Phil Davis ruined the Bellator debut of Yoel Romero thanks to some crisp striking and five takedowns.

SAN JOSE, Calif. – [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] made his long-awaited first walk to the Bellator cage Saturday, where he had his promotional debut spoiled by former light heavyweight champion [autotag]Phil Davis[/autotag].

In the Bellator 266 main event at SAP Center, Davis (23-6 MMA, 10-3 BMMA) defeated Romero (13-6 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) by split decision with scores of 30-27, 28-29, 30-26, although it wasn’t that close.

The first round was largely a staring contest, though big near-lands from Romero got thousands of oohs and ahhs out of those in attendance. Reminiscent of his UFC 248 fight against Israel Adesanya, “The Soldier of God” stood largely stationary while Davis tried to move in and out with striking.

Early in Round 2, Romero found his marks a handful of hard punches – and a brutal leg kick that Davis limped off. Shortly thereafter, Davis returned a hard punch of his own, which Romero acknowledged immediately thereafter with an exaggerated facial expression. As the seconds wound down in the round, Davis shot – and secured – the first takedown of the fight.

A sizzling Romero strike just missed Davis early in the final round. Davis resorted back to his bread and butter with another takedown attempt, which he secured after a lengthy struggle of strength. Davis would control Romero until the final buzzer and would be named the victor shortly thereafter.

With the victory, Davis reenters the win column after an April title challenge defeat to champion Vadim Nemkov at Bellator 257. Over the span of his most recent five fights, Davis has gone 4-1 with his other wins coming against Lyoto Machida, Karl Albrektsson, and Liam McGeary.

Romero, 44, has now lost four in a row and five of his past six outings. His last victory came in December 2018 when he knocked out Luke Rockhold. Saturday’s fight was his first at 205 pounds since his lone Strikeforce appearance, which took place in September 2011.

The full Bellator 266 results include:

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Twitter reacts to Phil Davis spoiling Yoel Romero’s debut at Bellator 266

See the top Twitter reactions to Phil Davis’s win over Yoel Romero at Bellator 266.

[autotag]Phil Davis[/autotag] gave [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] a rude welcome to Bellator with a main event win on Saturday at Bellator 266.

Davis (23-6 MMA, 10-3 BMMA), a former Bellator light heavyweight champion, showed he’s still very much relevant in the title picture when he scored a split decision win over Romero (13-6 MMA, 0-1 BMMA), who was making his anticipated promotional debut at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif.

Check below for the top Twitter reactions to Davis’ victory over Romero at Bellator 266