Romero moves into title picture with win
Yoel Romero cemented his place among the top middleweight contenders Saturday night, clouting Lyoto Machida at UFC Fight Night Hollywood for a third-round technical knockout.
The 38-year-old Miami transplant (10-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) stalked Michada (22-7, 14-7) throughout a main event scheduled for five rounds. The two traded kicks, with the former light heavyweight champ parrying and dancing while Romero seemingly waited for his opening.
He found it just over 90 seconds into Round 3. The Cuban native, who trains out of American Top TeamKendall, took Michada down and cracked him with five elbows to the face before he was pulled off and awarded the victory.
“I have great respect for Lyoto, he is a great athlete,” Romero said after the fight. “This fight was everything that I expected.”
There is some question as to Romero’s next opponent. The UFC did not comment early Sunday morning following Fight Night’s main draw, but Romero said he will fight whoever the league lines up for him.
“I am a fighter for the best organization in the world, UFC,” Romero said. “Whoever they give me to fight next, I will be there and I will give it my all. I will have my time.”
The card almost did not come off as planned.
Twelve Brazilian fighters were unable to obtain travel visas in time for the event and had to be pulled from the card. The UFC cobbled together what turned out to be an exciting card that drew a capacity crowd of roughly 5,600 to Hard Rock’s arena.
Lorenz Larkin claimed the only international victory for the American fighters on Saturday’s card with a TKO of Santiago Ponzibbio (21-3), one of four American Top Team fighters on the card. Larkin landed a left-right combination that sent the Argentine welterweight to the canvas in the second round. “The Monsoon” rained down punches on Ponzibbio until the referee stopped the bout at the 3:07 mark.
“My coach kept yelling at me and telling me to finish him,” Larkin (16-4, 1 no contest) said. “I had a great opportunity and I capitalized on it and I was able to win the fight.”
Antonio Carlos Junior fought Eddie Gordon into a submission in the first 30 seconds of the third round of their middleweight bout. Carlos Junior (5-1), who recently moved to Miami, had Gordon (7-4) in a bare-naked choke until Gordon tapped out.
Thiago Santos made quick work of Steve Bosse in the main event’s second bout. Santos (11-3, 3-2) knocked out the former semi-pro hockey goon in 29 seconds flat with a front ball kick to the left side of Bosse’s face.
Following the preliminary card’s opener in which American Top Team bantamweight Sirwan Kakai decisioned Danny Martinez, Steve “The Creepy Weasel” Montgomery and Tony Sims also made their league debuts in a scheduled three-rounder.
It didn’t last long. A left cross right to Montgomery’s jaw at the 2:43 mark in the first flattened the American Top Teamer, who’s among the welterweights on the current season of “The Ultimate Fighter.” As Montgomery (8-3, 0-1) lay on the mat, Sims hammered him with a right for the knockout.