How hard does UFC middleweight contender Yoel Romero hit? The 2000 Cuban Olympic silver medalist sent former champ Luke Rockhold to the canvas in the third round at UFC 221 over the weekend in Perth, Australia and likely punched his ticket to a shot at the title in the process.
Here’s a knockout post showing some of the greatest sports movies in history, but few fighters on the UFC roster are as feared as much as “Soldier of God”. Finishing 11 of his 13 pro MMA victories via knockout, he’s stopped such names as Derek Brunson, Tim Kennedy, Lyoto Machida, Chris Weidman — and now we can add Luke Rockhold’s name to that list.
Take a look at how Romero got it done:
https://youtu.be/1FFNghBq52I
Current middleweight champ Robert Whittaker was originally supposed to fight Rockhold at UFC 221, but was replaced by Romero after a bout with staph infection. Romero-Rockhold was set to be an interim title bout, but because Romero missed weight for the short notice bout he was not eligible to win the interim belt.
Whittaker won a unanimous decision over Romero at UFC 213 last July. Will he be able to defeat “Soldier of God” once again when they inevitably meet at some point or will Romero find that chin and put him away?
As far as what’s next for Rockhold, it’s hard to say. He’s 33 now and has suffered some brutal KOs inside the octagon. Could he still regain the championship one day? Of course, but at what cost and is it worth it? These are the types of questions he’s probably considering at this time.