Yoel Romero Issues Challenge to UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya
Yoel Romero has heard the rumblings regarding a potential matchup with Israel Adesanya, and now the Cuban standout has delivered a message to the reigning UFC middleweight champion.
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To be fair, it was Adesanya who mentioned Romero as an opponent after it was revealed that presumed No. 1 contender Paulo Henrique Costa would need considerable time to heal from surgery for a torn bicep. Adesanya claimed the 185-pound belt with a stoppage of Robert Whittaker in the UFC 243 headliner last month.
“I want to defend my title again in February or March,” Adesanya told MMAFighting.com. “Because homeboy [Paulo Costa], the guy I called out next, he’s been put out for a while. He can’t fight for eight months so I want to try and get whoever I can, probably [Yoel] Romero is who I’m asking for, either February or March.”
However, UFC president Dana White said that Romero would have to win another fight before being granted another shot at middleweight gold. “The Soldier of God” has lost three of his last four Octagon appearances, twice missing weight for proposed title bouts during that period.
“Hey Adesanya, why you calling me out and now you run away?” Romero added in a video post. “I am muscled, I am something like this? No man, fight. Take it today. Call Dana White and say, ‘Give me the f—ing date.’ That’s it.”
