UFC middleweight contender Bo Nickal declined to face Real American Freestyle 5 opponent Yoel Romero following a botched weight cut.<\/p>\n
Bo Nickal and Yoel Romero were supposed to square off in the co-main event of Real American Freestyle 5 last weekend in a 205-pound matchup. But at Saturday\u2019s official weigh-in, Romero missed weight by seven pounds, leaving Nickal the option of whether or not he wanted to face Romero and go on with the match.<\/p>\n
Nickal declined to grant Romero a catchweight bout, and the matchup was canceled and removed from the card. The card was headlined by a clash between former UFC titleholders Colby Covington and Luke Rockhold.<\/p>\n
After it was announced that Nickal vs. Romero was off, fans aimed at Nickal on social media and criticized his decision not to move forward with the match.<\/p>\n
Bo Nickal explains the reasoning behind the declined Yoel Romero RAF 5 showdown<\/p>\n
In a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show<\/a>, Nickal addressed his refusal to compete at RAF 5 following Romero\u2019s weight miss.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cIt was tough,\u201d Nickal said. \u201cIt was a tough situation. I got there in Florida, had all my family and friends down, and was looking forward to competing. Saturday morning at weigh-ins, I weighed in right at 9 a.m. I woke up around 203, ate and drank to get up to 205, waited around 45 minutes for Yoel to get there, and he waited a while. So once he didn\u2019t step on the scale right away, I kind of knew he was over. I expected two, three, four pounds, and no worries. We\u2019ll get it going. But he stepped on at 212.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople want to see me compete, which, I do too, but they don\u2019t understand what it\u2019s like to be in that position. This is not fun and games. This is not a charity match. This is a professional sporting event. I came in professional, and unfortunately, he didn\u2019t. It is what it is. I was ready to wrestle. If he made the weight, we\u2019re going, obviously. So that\u2019s not on me.\u201d (h\/t MMA Fighting<\/a>)<\/p>\n