Yoel Romero is excited to fight in Ireland.
Yoel Romero will be taking on Melvin Manhoef at Bellator 285 on September 23 live from Dublin, Ireland. This will be the first time the longtime MMA fighter will be fighting in Ireland and he is very excited about it. The Brazilian is already there training to prepare for this bout and is ready to put on a show for the home crowd.
Romero came to Bellator back in 2020 following a successful UFC career, and many thought he would become champion right away. That is still a goal of his but right now he is taking in all the new experiences that Bellator MMA has to offer, starting with this Ireland fight. The opponent that was offered to Romero was less of an issue than where the fight would be held. Romero spoke to Ariel Helwani of The MMA Hour about how much he respects the fight fans of Ireland.
“As my opponent goes, you can put anybody in front of me. And let’s use a metaphor of having someone for dinner, just put in my plate, and I’m gonna eat up. I’m gonna eat him up for dinner. Really, it’s that simple. And the only way that I will ever retreat from somebody in a fight is if I was injured and I was not physically capable of fighting, if not put anyone in front of me and I will be more than capable of fighting anybody,” he said. “And to tell you a truth, I was more excited about the venue for this fight than the opponent itself. The venue fighting in front of the Irish crowd. Such knowledge of a fan base and the Irish culture that has such a rich history of having this warrior culture.”
Yoel Romero is enjoying his time in Ireland thanks to Conor McGregor
Romero is living it up in Ireland thanks to his former UFC colleague Conor McGregor. Romero explained that McGregor has taken care of him while he is there to get ready for the fight.
“Conor has been great with me where he has provided me with everything I needed and more since I arrived in Ireland. Do I need a car, it’s there. Do I need some jewelry? It’s there. Do I need a gym to training? It’s there,” he said. “He has been so helpful and I’m so thankful for his helping hand.”
The craftiness of Yoel has always been incredible to watch! I am modeling the second half of my career off of this mad Cubano. @YoelRomeroMMA.
Excited for the fights this evening. https://t.co/vkFrbZEEVO— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) August 20, 2022
McGregor recently sang the praises of Romero in a post on social media. The two have fought on the same card several times while with the UFC and have grown to like and respect each other.
Bellator 285 will be headlined by a lightweight bout between Peter Queally vs. Benson Henderson.
