“Coma” is a great song by Overkill.
It’s also one of those fantastical stories that makes a fighter sound terrifying, though I don’t think anyone who’s seen this video needs to be convinced that Yoel Romero is a certified maniac. Nevertheless, “Soldier of God” has been peddling some pretty tall tales.
Like the time he punched Lyoto Machida so hard “The Dragon” was left comatose.
“I heard about [Romero’s comments] but I didn’t watch [the video], but that’s not true at all,” Machida told MMA Fighting. “What happened was, I broke my nose in that fight and had surgery. But there was no coma or anything like that. That never happened.”
Romero stopped Machida atop the UFC Fight Night 70 card back in June 2015.
“It makes no sense that a fighter would get in a coma and then fight like 20 times after that,” Machida continued. “I had nose surgery because I broke my nose. I had to stay in Miami for a week because I lived in Los Angeles and couldn’t fly with the nasal packing. That’s basically what happened. It’s normal stuff for us that fight.”
Romero’s finish over Machida was part of a torrid eight-fight win streak that also claimed the consciousness of Chris Weidman and Ronaldo Souza, among others. As for Machida, one year younger than “Soldier of God” at 46, he would post a 2-1 record following the Romero loss before jumping to Bellator MMA.
“The Dragon” is expected to coach for GFL later this year.