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Fighters

Yoel Romero

"Soldier of God"
16-7-0★ 8bonusesCuba / United StatesLast 5
Pro bare-knuckle 1-2Grappling 1-0Wrestling 8-4BKFC record 1-0-0

Last fight: Win vs Thiago Santos · Decision · Feb 24, 2024

16-7-0 · 13 finishes · Full stats →
LAST FIGHT
LOSSvs Darren TillUD · R5 02:00
BKFCBKFC 94 Manchester: Till vs Romero·September 26, 2026

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CAREER SUMMARY

Yoel Romero holds a professional MMA record of 16-7-0. Romero has won 16 fights: 13 by KO/TKO, 0 by submission, 3 by decision. Of 7 career losses, 1 came by KO/TKO and 0 by submission. In the UFC, Romero lands 3.49 significant strikes per minute with 49% accuracy and averages 1.65 takedowns per 15 minutes. Romero also has 1 recorded Grappling bout. Romero also has 3 recorded Bare-Knuckle Boxing bouts. Romero also has 1 recorded knuckle-mma bout. Romero also has 12 recorded wrestling bouts. Romero also has 2 recorded Special rules bouts. Most recent fight: September 26, 2026. Tracked organizations: BKFC, PFL, BELLATOR, UFC, STRIKEFORCE.

Profile

Height
6'0"183 cm
Weight
185 lbs84 kg
Reach
73"185 cm
Stance
Southpaw
DOB
Apr 30, 1977
Age
49
Nationality
Cuba / United States
Birthplace
Pinar Del Rio, Cuba

Latest on Yoel Romero

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Career history

  1. WIN
    vs Thiago Santos
    PFL vs Bellator: CHAMPS· Feb 24, 2024· Light Heavyweight· 16-7 vs 22-12
    DEC
    R3 · 5:00
  2. LOSS
    vs Vadim NemkovTitle bout
    Bellator 297: Nemkov vs Romero· Jun 16, 2023· Light Heavyweight· 15-7 vs 17-2
    UD
    R5 · 5:00
  3. WIN
    vs Melvin Manhoef
    Bellator 285: Henderson vs Queally· Sep 23, 2022· 15-6 vs 32-16-1
    TKO
    R3 · 3:34
  4. WIN
    vs Alex Polizzi
    Bellator 280: Bader vs Kongo 2· May 6, 2022· 14-6 vs 10-2
    TKO
    R3 · 4:59
  5. LOSS
    vs Phil Davis
    Bellator 266: Davis vs Romero· Sep 18, 2021· 13-6 vs 23-6
    SD
    R3 · 5:00
  6. LOSS
    vs Israel AdesanyaTitle bout
    UFC 248: Adesanya vs Romero· Mar 7, 2020· Middleweight· 13-5 vs 19-0
    UD
    R5 · 5:00
  7. LOSS
    vs Paulo Costa
    UFC 241: Cormier vs Miocic· Aug 17, 2019· Middleweight· 13-4 vs 13-0
    UD
    R3 · 5:00
    FOTN
  8. LOSS
    vs Robert Whittaker
    UFC 225: Whittaker vs Romero· Jun 9, 2018· Middleweight· 13-3 vs 20-4
    SD
    R5 · 5:00
    FOTN
  9. WIN
    vs Luke Rockhold
    UFC 221: Romero vs Rockhold· Feb 11, 2018· Middleweight· 13-2 vs 16-4
    TKO
    R3 · 1:48
  10. LOSS
    vs Robert WhittakerTitle bout
    UFC 213: Romero vs Whittaker· Jul 8, 2017· Interim Middleweight· 12-2 vs 19-4
    UD
    R5 · 5:00
    FOTN
  11. WIN
    vs Chris Weidman
    UFC 205: Alvarez vs McGregor· Nov 12, 2016· Middleweight· 12-1 vs 13-2
    TKO
    R3 · 0:24
    POTN
  12. WIN
    vs Jacare Souza
    UFC 194: Aldo vs McGregor· Dec 12, 2015· Middleweight· 11-1 vs 22-4
    SD
    R3 · 5:00
  13. WIN
    vs Lyoto Machida
    UFC Fight Night: Machida vs Romero· Jun 27, 2015· Middleweight· 10-1 vs 22-7
    TKO
    R3 · 1:38
    POTN
  14. WIN
    vs Tim Kennedy
    UFC 178: Johnson vs Cariaso· Sep 27, 2014· Middleweight· 9-1 vs 18-5
    TKO
    R3 · 0:58
    FOTN
  15. WIN
    vs Brad Tavares
    UFC on FOX: Werdum vs Browne· Apr 19, 2014· Middleweight· 8-1 vs 12-2
    UD
    R3 · 5:00
  16. WIN
    vs Derek Brunson
    UFC Fight Night: Rockhold vs Philippou· Jan 15, 2014· Middleweight· 7-1 vs 11-3
    TKO
    R3 · 3:23
    FOTN
  17. WIN
    vs Ronny Markes
    UFC Fight Night: Kennedy vs Natal· Nov 6, 2013· Middleweight· 6-1 vs 14-2
    TKO
    R3 · 1:39
  18. WIN
    vs Clifford Starks
    UFC on FOX: Henderson vs Melendez· Apr 20, 2013· Middleweight· 5-1 vs 8-2
    TKO
    R1 · 1:32
    KOTN
  19. LOSS
    vs Rafael Cavalcante
    Strikeforce: Barnett vs Kharitonov· Sep 10, 2011· Light Heavyweight· 4-1 vs 11-3
    TKO
    R2 · 4:51
  20. WIN
    vs Laszlo Eck
    Germany Regional· May 27, 2011· 4-0 vs 0-1
    TKO
  21. WIN
    vs Ņikita Petrovs
    Superior FC· Mar 5, 2011· 3-0 vs 1-5
    TKO
  22. WIN
    vs Michal Fijalka
    Poland Regional· Oct 8, 2010· 2-0 vs 6-2
    TKO
  23. WIN
    vs Sascha Weinpolter
    Germany Regional· Dec 20, 2009· 1-0 vs 7-2
    TKO

Title bout

Background

Credentials, amateur pedigree and camp

BaseFreestyle Wrestling
  • 2025Interim Light Heavyweight Champion · Real American Freestyle (RAF)
  • 2007Champion · Grand Prix Germany
  • 2005Silver · World Championships UWW · 84 kg freestyle
  • 20044th Place · Olympics · 84 kg freestyle
  • 20036th Place · World Championships UWW · 84 kg freestyle
  • 2003Champion · Pan American Games · 84 kg freestyle
  • 2002Silver · World Championships UWW · 84 kg freestyle
  • 2001Bronze · World Championships UWW · 85 kg freestyle
  • 2000Silver · Olympics · 85 kg freestyle
  • 1999Champion · World Championships UWW · 85 kg freestyle
  • 1999Bronze · Pan American Games · 85 kg freestyle
  • 1998Bronze · World Championships UWW · 85 kg freestyle
  • 19975th Place · World Championships UWW · 85 kg freestyle
  • 1997Bronze · Wrestling World Cup · 85 kg freestyle
  • Champion · Pan American Championships · 85 kg / 84 kg / 96 kg freestyle
  • Champion · Wrestling World Cup · 85 kg / 84 kg freestyle
  • Silver · Wrestling World Cup · 85 kg / 84 kg freestyle
  • Cuba national team · Freestyle Wrestling · 1997-2007
  • SV Johannis Nürnberg (Ringer-Bundesliga) · 2007-
  • Started in Freestyle Wrestling

Camp

  • American Top Team · Coconut Creek, Florida, United States

Training partners

  • Robbie Lawler
  • Thiago Alves
  • Thiago Silva
  • Glover Teixeira

Fight DNA

Knockout Artist

UFCalendar's style model · Light Heavyweight roster (213 fighters)

PowerSpeedPrecisionDurabilityEngineWrestlingGround
Sniper
99 · best in division
Iron Chin
96 · best in division
Fast Hands
98 · top 5% in division
Punch power97
Kick power97
Punch speed98
Kick speed98
Accuracy99
Takedowns94
Ground striking96
Submissions59
Chin96
Body strength97
Cardio94

Attributes are rated 0-100 by UFCalendar's style model.

By the numbers

Pro MMARecord: 16-7-0 · Source: UFCalendar
Striking
Strikes landed3.41per min
49% accuracy
Strikes absorbed3.06per min
61% avoided
Grappling
Takedowns landed1.53per 15 min
33% success
Takedowns stuffed81%
Submission attempts0.0per 15 min
UFC careerRecord: 9-4-0 · Source: UFCStats.com
Striking
Strikes landed3.49per min
49% accuracy
Strikes absorbed3.11per min
61% avoided
Grappling
Takedowns landed1.65per 15 min
33% success
Takedowns stuffed81%
Submission attempts0.0per 15 min
Pro bare-knuckleRecord: 1-2 · Source: UFCalendar
Striking
Strikes landed4.52per min
54% accuracy
Strikes absorbed4.59per min
58% avoided
See every fight's numbers

Where they rank

All-time boards where Yoel Romero sits in the top 25.

Related fighters

Recent & upcoming opponents

Salary & career earnings

Disclosed purses, reported paydays and what we estimate Yoel Romero earns per fight.

Yoel Romero's salary & career earnings →

Official UFC Ranking

Yoel Romero's standing in the official UFC rankings, tracked since 2013.

Current
Unranked
Peak
#1 Middleweight
First ranked
Jan 17, 2014
Times ranked
243

Men's Pound-for-Pound

#1#5#10#15Feb 1, 2017 · #15Apr 26, 2017 · #15#15

Middleweight

#1#5#10#15201520162017201820192020Jan 17, 2014 · #14Feb 24, 2014 · #15Mar 24, 2014 · #14Apr 21, 2014 · #11May 12, 2014 · #12Jun 2, 2014 · #11Aug 25, 2014 · #10Sep 29, 2014 · #6Jun 29, 2015 · #3Dec 14, 2015 · #2Jan 4, 2016 · #2Aug 3, 2016 · #15Aug 9, 2016 · #4Nov 16, 2016 · #1Jul 10, 2017 · #2Sep 20, 2017 · #3Nov 29, 2017 · #2Dec 13, 2017 · #1Apr 15, 2019 · #2Aug 19, 2019 · #3Mar 9, 2020 · #4Jul 27, 2020 · #5Nov 30, 2020 · #5#5

View full UFC rankings →

UFCalendar Power Index rating

Current
1796▲7
Peak
1912Feb 10, 2018
Rated fights
23
15001650180020102013201620192022Dec 20, 2009 · 1552Oct 8, 2010 · 1610Mar 5, 2011 · 1627May 27, 2011 · 1653Sep 10, 2011 · 1614Apr 20, 2013 · 1660Nov 6, 2013 · 1703Jan 15, 2014 · 1745Apr 19, 2014 · 1772Sep 27, 2014 · 1811Jun 27, 2015 · 1853Dec 12, 2015 · 1867Nov 13, 2016 · 1909Jul 9, 2017 · 1874Feb 10, 2018 · 1912Jun 9, 2018 · 1898Aug 18, 2019 · 1850Mar 8, 2020 · 1829Sep 18, 2021 · 1774May 6, 2022 · 1789Sep 23, 2022 · 1796Jun 16, 2023 · 1789Feb 24, 2024 · 17961796

See the full Power Index →

Frequently asked questions

When does Yoel Romero fight next?

Yoel Romero has no confirmed upcoming fight.

What is Yoel Romero's record?

Yoel Romero's professional MMA record is 16-7-0.

Who is Yoel Romero fighting next?

Yoel Romero's next opponent has not been announced.

Who did Yoel Romero fight last?

Yoel Romero most recently fought Darren Till at BKFC 94 Manchester: Till vs Romero on Saturday, September 26, 2026, LOSS (Unanimous Decision).

What weight class does Yoel Romero fight in?

Yoel Romero fights at Cruiserweight.

How many knockouts does Yoel Romero have?

Yoel Romero has 13 wins by KO/TKO and 0 wins by submission.

How many UFC bonuses has Yoel Romero won?

Yoel Romero has won 8 UFC post-fight bonuses: 5× Fight of the Night, 2× Performance of the Night, 1× KO of the Night.

How tall is Yoel Romero?

Yoel Romero is 6'0" (183 cm) tall.

How much does Yoel Romero weigh?

Yoel Romero weighs 185 lbs (84 kg).

What is Yoel Romero's reach?

Yoel Romero has a reach of 73" (185 cm).

How old is Yoel Romero?

Yoel Romero is 49 years old (born Apr 30, 1977).

Where is Yoel Romero from?

Yoel Romero is from Cuba / the United States.

Get Yoel Romero's fight history and stats as JSON with the MMA Fight Data API →