Yoel Romero Says There Is A ‘Very Great’ Possibility He Fights Robert Whittaker In Miami
Yoel Romero’s title ambitions are back on track following a win over Luke Rockhold at UFC 221 and he now looks to set fight Robert Whittaker for a second time with the UFC middleweight title on the line.
Romero’s opportunity to fight Rockhold came about after Whittaker suffered an unfortunate injury and took full advantage of the situation with highlight reel second round knockout of the former champion.
Romero got a nice experience from Australia, a country where he could share and show something of his Cuban heritage during the open workouts. Speaking this week to MMANytt.com the “Soldier of God” explained that for him, MMA isn’t all just about combat, it’s about having the opportunity to have cultural exchanges.
“It is very good to interact with people, this is not only punches. You have to relate to the crowd that is following you, give them some of your own too,” Romero stated. “They see the person who is fighting, but also need to see that we are a happy family, a happy country, that we dance salsa, full of harmony and friendship, love, this is what I also saw from Australia, believe me, it is a wonderful country, people are happy and they distil joy from their body”.
With Romero in the picture for the belt, he hopes that the UFC will return to Miami after 15 years of absence, to perform in front of his audience against the champion Whittaker for the second time. The 40-year veteran is confident that the event can take place in Florida.
“The possibility of fighting in Miami is very great,” Romero said. “We just have to wait on God and I tell the fans to wait and trust.”
Mixed martial arts are a constant learning process, Romero is aware of it, therefore, admits to having learned a lot in his defeat against Whittaker, the same learning that allowed him to give a different fight to Luke Rockhold.
“I’ve changed a lot, how did you see me?,” He asked laughingly. “Everything is going to be learned through the experiences you’re having in the octagon, if you look well, I’m the one who has the least fights of all those people, and all my fights have been in the UFC”.
The last time the UFC was in Miami was at UFC 42, held on April 25 in 2003. Attendance was not good (7,500) at the American Airlines Arena and maybe that’s why the promotion has decided not to return, however, a Romero bout, who lives in Miami, could be a different story, taking into account the high number of Cubans (more than one million) living in Florida.
