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Israel Adesanya’s maiden title defense has been made official.
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has gone back-and-forth with top contender Yoel Romero over the past few months to setup a possible matchup down the line. A week ago, “The Last Stylebender” announced that the fight is a done deal for UFC 248.
On late Thursday night, the fight was made official. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto first broke the news, declaring that the two men will indeed headline the card. It all happened nearly a day after Robert Whittaker pulled out of his scheduled fight against Jared Cannonier, which was originally slated for the event’s main card.
BREAKING: Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) vs. Yoel Romero (@YoelRomeroMMA) will headline UFC 248 in Las Vegas per Dana White. Adesanya was itching to fight. Big one in the desert on March 7. pic.twitter.com/pnx6M5aNoW
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) January 17, 2020
Adesanya unified the 185-pound titles at UFC 243 last October in Melbourne when he knocked out Whittaker in the second round. He holds an undefeated record and notable victories over Kelvin Gastelum and former long-time champion Anderson Silva.
Romero last fought at UFC 241 in August, and lost via decision against Paulo Costa. Currently ranked number three, “The Soldier of God” is on a two-fight losing streak. Costa is currently sidelined due to injury, setting up Romero for another title shot despite that losing skid.
UFC 248 will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 7th. Also part of the card is the strawweight title fight between Weili Zhang and Joanna Jedrzejczyk.