Manager explains how Yoel Romero got UFC 248 title shot vs. Israel Adesanya off two losses

LAS VEGAS – Yoel Romero is set to become the first fighter in UFC history to challenge for a championship following consecutive losses when he goes for the middleweight belt against Israel Adesanya at UFC 248.

Although there’s going to be layer of controversy attached any time a fighter goes into a title bout under the conditions Romero (13-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) faces, the headlining bout of the March 7 pay-per-view event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, seems among the more justifiable.

Adesanya (18-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) specifically asked the UFC to set up the booking, and the timing worked out because consensus No. 1 contender Paulo Costa is still recovering from bicep surgery.

Romero might be 1-3 in his past four fights and coming off back-to-back losses, but all those fights have come down to the wire and ended in competitive decisions. He could just as easily be 4-0 in that stretch, and his manager, Abraham Kawa of First Round Management, said he thinks Adesanya recognizes the reality of the situation.

“If you’re looking at it from Izzy’s eyes, and Izzy has been very forthcoming and very honest, he said, ‘That’s the boogeyman, that’s the top of the division, that’s the guy I want to fight,’” Kawa told MMA Junkie. “I give all the respect in the world to Izzy for saying that because I believe Izzy in his heart believes (Romero) beat Costa, he beat Rob (Whittaker) possibly once, maybe twice depending on how you look at it. So, he could’ve possibly been defending his title a few times now. So I like the fact he did that Izzy said, ‘That the guy I want to go after.’ Let’s do it.”

It’s not difficult to poke holes in the matchmaking between Romero and Adesanya. It strays away from norm of granting title fights to the most deserving or proven contender, but Kawa doesn’t think this particular instance is difficult to defend.

“This is still entertainment, so this is a business where the most exciting fighters are always going to be put on the biggest platforms, to be able to fight for the biggest prizes,” Kawa said. “If you are not exciting, it’s kind of hard to put you in a position to grow and be there. Taking nothing away from Costa, he apparently has an injury to his bicep and whatnot. It’s unfortunate for him. But one person’s unfortunate situation is another person’s fortunate situation.

“In our case they have no one else at 185 who can actually do that. It wasn’t just an example of having nobody else. Not having anybody else there, it’s only one part of it. You could’ve had someone else jump Yoel. Someone that drops down from light heavyweight to drop down to 185 to get that shot.”

For Romero, the clash with Adesanya is a pivotal moment in his career. At 42, a victory would make “The Soldier of God” the second-oldest champion in UFC history behind Randy Couture, who held the heavyweight strap at 44.

This could be the last opportunity Romero gets to fight for a title in his career, but Kawa said his client is not looking at the end. He hasn’t seen a drop-off in Romero’s talent, and retirement won’t come into play until that happens.

“His answer to me has always been the same, over and over again: When God tells me to step away, I will step away,” Kawa said. “What he means by that is when God takes his abilities physically away from him, I think he’ll know it. He’ll know it before any of us even see it on tape, see it on camera, whatever it may be. Once that gets taken from him he will say, ‘I can’t do it anymore. It’s over.’ But as of right now there’s nothing that says he is even close to done. So get ready.”

To hear from Kawa on Romero, watch the video above, and for our full interview, watch the video below.