Not only is Yoel Romero ready to return, he now has a fight booked.
One day after Bellator president Scott Coker told MMA Junkie that Romero has been medically cleared, the promotion rebooked his promotional debut for September 18 against former light heavyweight champion Phil Davis. The fight is set to headline Bellator 266, the promotion’s first event at its home base of SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., since Bellator 226 on Sept. 7, 2019.
A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the booking Friday following an initial report from Ariel Helwani. The promotion later confirmed the news with an announcement.
This is a re-do for Romero, who signed with Bellator last December after a seven-year run with the UFC. Romero (13-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) previously was booked to make his debut against Anthony Johnson to open the Bellator light heavyweight grand prix on May 7. However, Romero was forced to withdraw because of concerns about his eye following a pre-fight medical exam.
Romero, 44, hasn’t competed since March 2020 when he dropped a unanimous decision to UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 248, which marked his third consecutive loss. His other two defeats in the skid came against Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa. Romero hasn’t won since a February 2018 knockout of Luke Rockhold at UFC 221.
Davis (22-6 MMA, 9-3 BMMA), meanwhile, is coming off an April 16 unanimous decision loss to champion Vadim Nemkov in the Bellator light heavyweight grand prix, which snapped a three-fight winning streak.
The current Bellator 266 lineup includes:
- Phil Davis vs. Yoel Romero
- DeAnna Bennett vs. Alejandra Lara
- Adam Piccolotti vs. Saul Rogers
- Grant Neal vs. Alex Polizzi
