A decision has been made regarding Robert Whittaker vs. Yoel Romero II… Kind of.
The main event of UFC 225 was plunged into jeopardy on Friday afternoon when Romero missed weight for his latest shot at middleweight gold.
Romero initially came in at 186lbs and was given an additional hour to get down to 185lbs for the much-anticipated rematch but he could only get as low as 185.2lbs, meaning he was ineligible to fight for the title.
It was the second time in as many fights that ‘The Soldier of God’ came in heavy for a world championship bout and in spite of the fact that he looked in considerable pain following his weight cut, the fight with Whittaker is going ahead.
UFC President Dana White confirmed that the fight will take place while Whittaker’s title will not be on the line.
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) June 8, 2018
Even as the ceremonial weigh-ins got started late on Friday evening, nobody was quite sure of the status of the fight but, after the final face-off, it was confirmed that both Whittaker and Romero would share the Octagon on Saturday night.
Romero claimed that the Illinois State Athletic Commission was to blame for ending his weight cut early.
“I missed weight but the situation is very complicated,” Romero said. “I needed two hours but the commission only gave me one. Nothing would have happened. I don’t know why the commission didn’t give me two hours.”
Whittaker, meanwhile, intended to leave the final negotiations of the updated terms to his camp.
Whittaker said: “I have a great team and a great staff. They’re going to worry about all of that. My job here is done and I’m still doing my job. I’m refueling and getting ready for a fight.”
