Yoel
Romero
can undoubtedly feel the wall at his back.
The 2000 Olympic silver medalist will draw his second assignment
under the
Bellator
MMA banner when he faces
Alex
Polizzi in the
Bellator 280 light heavyweight co-headliner on Friday at Accor
Arena in Paris. Romero finds himself on a career-worst four-fight
losing streak and in desperate need of a positive outcome. The
American Top Team mainstay last competed at Bellator 266, where
he wound up on the wrong side of a split decision against
Phil Davis on
Sept. 18. Polizzi, meanwhile, enters the cage on the strength of
three consecutive victories. The Chosen Few Gym product last fought
on March 12, when he submitted
Jose Augusto Azevedo Barros with a rear-naked choke in the
third round of their Bellator 276 pairing.
In advance of the Romero-Polizzi showdown at 205 pounds, a look at
some of the numbers that have accompanied the two participants to
this point:
45: Years of age for Romero, who was born on April 30, 1977 in
Pinar del Rio, Cuba.
11: Romero wins by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for
85% of his career total (13). His list of victims includes three
former
Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholders:
Luke
Rockhold,
Chris
Weidman and
Lyoto
Machida. Romero holds two other wins by decision.
1,545: Days since Romero last visited victory lane. He has posted a
0-4 record following his third-round knockout of the aforementioned
Rockhold at UFC 221 on Feb. 10, 2018.
8: Post-fight bonuses banked by Romero across his 13 appearances in
the UFC. He was awarded “Fight of the Night” on five times,
“Performance of the Night” on two occasions and “Knockout of the
Night” once, resulting in $350,000 of additional income.
95: Combined victories between the five opponents—Davis,
Robert
Whittaker (twice),
Israel
Adesanya,
Paulo Costa
and
Rafael
Cavalcante—who have beaten Romero. They boast a cumulative .812
winning percentage (95-22).
30: Years of age for Polizzi, who was born in Beloit, Wisconsin, on
Dec. 22, 1991.
4: Polizzi victories by submission, accounting for 40% of his
career total (10). His methods of choice: two rear-naked chokes,
one heel hook and one straight armbar. Polizzi owns four other
victories by knockout or technical knockout and two more by
decision.
191: Seconds needed for Polizzi to put away
Jaquis
Williams with a rear-naked choke in his professional debut at
Pure Fighting Championships 9 on July 28, 2018. Having occurred
nearly four years ago, it remains his fastest finish to date.
5: Companies for which Polizzi has provided his services as a mixed
martial artist. He has gone 4-1 in Bellator, 2-0 in the
Legacy Fighting Alliance, 2-0 in Chosen Few Fighting
Championships, 1-0 in Pure Fighting Championship and 1-0 in Final
Fight Championship.
16: Rounds completed by Polizzi since he turned pro. He has gone
the distance on three different occasions and carries a 2-1 record
in those bouts, a November 2020 unanimous decision loss to
Julius
Anglickas the lone outlier.