Yoel Romero

Romero began training in wrestling during the 1990s and represented Cuba at senior international competitions. He became the 1999 world freestyle wrestling champion at 85 kilograms after defeating Russia's Khadzhimurad Magomedov, a 1996 Olympic gold medalist. Romero went on to win medals at five World Championships, including one gold, two silver medals, and two bronze medals.

He represented Cuba at the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics. Romero won the silver medal in the 2000 freestyle competition after losing to Adam Saitiev in the final, then finished fourth at the 2004 Olympics. His other major wrestling achievements included a gold medal at the 2003 Pan American Games, three World Cup titles, and five Pan American Championships.

After competing infrequently following 2005, Romero won the Grand Prix of Germany in 2007 and remained in Germany rather than returning to Cuba. He joined Germany's Ringer-Bundesliga, competing for SV Johannis Nuremberg while also helping coach and train the team. This period preceded his transition into mixed martial arts.

Romero made his professional mixed martial arts debut in December 2009 and compiled a 5-0 record across regional promotions in Germany and Poland. Serge Kuftin and Zike Simic trained him at Peter Althof's Martial Arts Gym Nürnberg during this period. He signed with Strikeforce in 2011, but a neck injury kept him out of competition until 2013.

After Strikeforce was absorbed by the UFC, Romero debuted in the promotion against Clifford Starks in April 2013. He won by first-round flying-knee knockout and received Knockout of the Night honors. He followed that result with victories over Ronny Markes, Derek Brunson, Brad Tavares, and Tim Kennedy, then stopped Lyoto Machida with elbows in 2015 and defeated Ronaldo Souza by split decision later that year.

Romero stopped former middleweight champion Chris Weidman at UFC 205 in 2016, extending his UFC winning streak to eight fights. He challenged Robert Whittaker for the interim UFC Middleweight Championship in 2017 and lost by unanimous decision. Romero later knocked out Luke Rockhold at UFC 221, although he missed weight and was ineligible to win the interim championship, then lost a close non-title rematch with Whittaker at UFC 225 after missing weight again.

He subsequently lost decisions to Paulo Costa and Israel Adesanya. The Adesanya bout at UFC 248 was for the UFC middleweight title. Romero left the UFC in December 2020 with a professional MMA record of 13-5 inside the promotion and moved to Bellator MMA.

Bellator announced Romero's multi-fight deal in December 2020, with plans for him to compete in the light heavyweight division. He was initially scheduled to face Anthony Johnson in the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix, but an eye issue prevented him from passing the pre-fight medical screening and removed him from the tournament.

Romero made his Bellator debut against Phil Davis in September 2021 and lost by split decision. He earned his first Bellator victory against Alex Polizzi at Bellator 280, stopping him with punches in the final seconds of the third round. Later in 2022, Romero knocked out Melvin Manhoef with ground-and-pound elbows.

He challenged Vadim Nemkov for the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Championship at Bellator 297 in 2023 and lost by unanimous decision. Romero returned to winning form against Thiago Santos at the PFL versus Bellator event in February 2024, earning a unanimous decision.

Romero has competed outside traditional mixed martial arts. In a 2019 submission grappling match, he defeated Chris Barnett despite giving up a weight advantage and submitted him with a kimura from top position.

He entered Mike Perry's Dirty Boxing Championship in November 2024 and knocked out Duane Crespo in the first round. Romero also stopped Ras Hylton by technical knockout in the third round at the promotion's DBX1 event in March 2025.

Romero signed with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship in 2025 and defeated Theo Doukas by second-round technical knockout at BKFC 80. He later lost a five-round bare-knuckle bout to Vagab Vagabov by unanimous decision at IBA Bare Knuckle 4.

Romero is a southpaw whose background is rooted in Olympic freestyle wrestling, although he has often relied more heavily on his boxing and explosive striking in mixed martial arts. Most of his MMA victories have come by knockout or technical knockout, and his pull-back left-handed counter is regarded as one of his most dangerous attacks. He trains with American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida.

Romero describes himself as a Christian and a man of God. His younger brother, Yoan Pablo Hernández, was an IBF Cruiserweight Champion in professional boxing. Romero has one daughter with his wife and also has two daughters and a son in Cuba.