Yahoo Sports Chris Weidman vs. Yoel Romero Latest, Perhaps Final, UFC 205 Bout
The long rumored bout between Chris Weidman and Yoel Romero is now official. It is the latest, and possibly final, confirmed bout for UFC 205, which takes place on Nov. 12 at the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York.
UFC president Dana White unveiled the bout on the The Boomer & Carton Show, as part of his media rounds in New York on Tuesday. A UFC 205: Alvarez vs. McGregor press conference is slated for 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday at The Garden.
Weidman's (13-1) return to the Octagon has been a long time coming. He hasn't fought since he lost the UFC middleweight championship to Luke Rockhold at UFC 194 in December of 2015.
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That loss ended a streak that stretched back to the beginning of his career in 2009. Weidman reeled off 13 consecutive victories that included wins over the likes of Vitor Belfort, Lyoto Machida, Demian Maia, and two against Anderson Silva.
Romero (12-1) has never lost in the Octagon. His lone defeat was at the hands of Rafael Cavalcante under the Strikeforce banner in 2011. His current seven-fight streak includes victories over Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, Machida, and Tim Kennedy.
Like Weidman, Romero has been on the sidelines since December. His time out of the cage was due to being flagged for violating the UFC Anti-Doping Policy in an out-of-competition drug test. Romero tested positive for ibutamoren, a growth hormone release stimulator. He claimed that it was due to a tainted supplement. An independent test of an unopened container of the supplement showed that it also was tainted with ibutamoren.
Romero reached a settlement with USADA, the administrator of the anti-doping program, accepting a six-month suspension. The fight with Weidman will be his first since his suspension ended.
UFC 205 features three title fights, including Eddie Alvarez vs. Conor McGregor for the lightweight championship, welterweight champion Tyron Woodley putting his belt on the line for the first time against Stephen Thompson, and strawweight titleholder Joanna Jedrzejczyk defending against fellow Polish fighter Karolina Kowalkiewicz.