Yoel Romero May Burst Onto The Middleweight Title Scene As A Top Contender:
An Olympic silver medalist in freestyle wrestling for his native Cuba, No. 10-ranked middleweight Yoel Romero has exploded onto the UFC scene with four straight victories since debuting at UFC on FOX 7.
Romero most recently got his biggest UFC victory with a decision win over tough challenger Brad Tavares at UFC on FOX 11. He’ll face a much higher ranked opponent at UFC 178 in the form of No. 6 Tim Kennedy, who most recently out-grappled Michael Bisping in the main event of April’s The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale.
Former Army Ranger Kennedy has some of the most stifling grappling in the game, and he’s shown knockout power at times.
However, Romero is a massively muscled middleweight who many feel is destined for great things in the UFC. He could be the best pure wrestler in MMA today, meaning that Kennedy’s grinding clinch game simply won’t work on “The Soldier of God.”
But Kennedy has excellent conditioning as well, and Romero appeared to gas during his UFC Fight Night 31 bout with Derek Brunson. He was able to score the late round finish, but Kennedy is a tough man to knock out.
If Romero can do so, expect him to trade rankings spots with “The Sniper” and find himself headed for a big fight next, possibly against an opponent like Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza or the winner of December’s Lyoto Machida vs. C.B. Dollaway match-up.
