Well it looks as though we have ourselves a top contender for the middleweight title.
With Luke Rockhold hurt and Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in some weird, paid-to-cut-weight-but-not-actually-fighting-this-weekend purgatory, Yoel Romero came out at UFC 205 and showed the world who should be next for a chance at Michael Bisping’s strap.
It was a remarkable showing for Romero, one that provided elite middleweight action punctuated by an utterly outrageous finish.
The first round started with a feeling-out process, Weidman throwing kicks while Romero judged distance and evaded. The dance continued until Weidman surprisingly took down the former Olympic silver medallist, leading to a hurried scramble that ended in a reset on the feet at the center of the Octagon. Once there, it was New York’s “All-American” dictating the pace with a variety of kicks accented by some pawing punching combinations to keep Romero honest.
As the round came to a close, it was quite evident that the former middleweight champion was looking to make the Cuban work at a high pace, as he scored another takedown and rode it out until the final horn.
The second was slightly delayed as Romero needed to be towelled off in a moment that harkened back to a past controversy in his fight with Tim Kennedy, but once the action started it was much of the same as the first.
Weidman pressured consistently at distance, peppering with combinations enough to keep Romero off-balance enough to attempt takedowns and then repeat the whole process. Romero woke up after suffering an eye poke, however, scoring a slick trip takedown and controlling Weidman for the back half of the round by way of a prolonged back ride, which evolved into some mat wrestling.
And then it was all over in an instant.
Coming out of the corner to start the third, Romero hit a savage flying knee that put Weidman to the mat for good. He was badly wobbled and severely cut, a victim of the freakish athleticism Romero possessed. The knee landed as Weidman shot for a takedown, and once it connected all he could do was cover up and wait for the referee to save him.
In a time when there are several names jockeying to be in the pole position of middleweight contendership, this win puts Romero ahead of the pack—particularly in light of the muddled circumstances surrounding the other true elites of the class.
To come out on the biggest stage the UFC has ever provided and win convincingly in front of such a hot, boisterous crowd is a statement of the highest order. Look for him to get his shot in the not-too-distant future, as Bisping has expressed a keenness to fight in January before taking on a movie role.
For Weidman, a setback at such a high level is surely less damaging than being the victim of an upset would have been. He’s still in the mix at the very peak of the division and could easily remain only a win or two away from a title shot himself.
Pairing him with whoever comes out of next weekend’s bout between Gegard Mousasi and Uriah Hall could work, as it would force him to show he still belongs at the very top of the weight class while also allowing Mousasi or Hall a chance to break into that conversation as well.
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