Doukas will also be making his promotional debut when he meets the former UFC star at BKFC 80, which will take place at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, FL.<\/p>\n
A silver medalist in freestyle wrestling at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Cuba\u2019s Romero made his MMA debut in 2009 and went 4-0 before losing his Strikeforce debut against Rafael Cavalcante in 2011. <\/p>\n
READ MORE: Ex-UFC fighter drops wild claim about Dricus du Plessis’ future after Khamzat fight<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cSoldier of God\u201d joined the UFC when the promotion purchased Strikeforce and scored a first-round knockout in his debut against Clifford Starks in 2013, which kicked off a nine-fight win streak that set up a failed interim middleweight title bid <\/a>opposite Robert Whittaker at UFC 213. <\/p>\n Israel Adesanya (red gloves) fights Yoel Romero (blue gloves) during UFC 248 at T-Mobile Arena. \/ Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images<\/p>\n Romero rebounded from his first UFC loss by knocking out former UFC titleholder Luke Rockhold but dropped a split decision in his rematch with Whittaker, and he unfortunately missed weight for both of those outings. The Olympian went on to drop his next bout<\/a> to Paulo Costa before closing out his UFC career with a third-straight loss when he challenged Israel Adesanya for the middleweight belt <\/a>at UFC 248. <\/p>\n After exiting the UFC, Romero competed under the Bellator MMA banner as a light heavyweight and challenged Vadim Nemkov for the promotion\u2019s 205 lbs. title in 2023. <\/p>\n READ MORE: Alex Pereira\u2019s UFC 320 event gets knockout-friendly middleweight scrap<\/a><\/p>\n The 48-year-old defeated fellow UFC veteran and former light heavyweight title challenger Thiago Santos at PFL vs. Bellator last year before making the jump to Mike Perry\u2019s Dirty Boxing, where Romero went 2-0 as a heavyweight<\/a> with a pair of finishes against Duane Crespo and Ras Hylton. <\/p>\n YOEL ROMERO MAKES HIS BKFC DEBUT SEPTEMBER 12th AGAINST THEO DOUKAS!#BKFC80<\/a> | Sept 12 | Tix on sale at https:\/\/t.co\/LJX5urGSHu<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/zzUpwCEejh<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Bare Knuckle FC (@bareknucklefc) August 5, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cSoldier of God\u201d looks to be fully committed to the heavyweight division at this stage of his combat sports journey, and he\u2019ll welcome Doukas to the weight class at BKFC 80 after the American went 2-2 during his own professional MMA career.<\/p>\n \u2022 UFC fighter teases Conor McGregor’s next fight opponent<\/a><\/p>\n \u2022 Max Holloway shares unfortunate update after UFC 318<\/a><\/p>\n \u2022 Khamzat Chimaev needed just one punch and 17 seconds to flatline UFC veteran<\/a><\/p>\n \u2022 UFC announces 2 banger fights for Australia Fight Night<\/a><\/p>\n Stick with MMAKnockout<\/a> for more FREE coverage of the UFC and MMA.<\/p>\n Follow MMAKnockout on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n