Next weekend’s Bellator 258 co-main event has taken a hit as Yoel Romero has been forced to pull out of the fight. Bellator MMA released a statement late Thursday night that Romero did not pass his pre-fight medical clearance and as a result, the fight against Anthony Johnson will be postponed. While the fight has been postponed, the promotion added that they will be confirmed and announce an alternate opponent to face Johnson in the final fight of the Grand Prix opening round.
Here is the complete statement on Yoel Romero’s condition from Bellator MMA:
Yoel Romero did not clear pre-fight medical testing and as a result, his BELLATOR MMA debut against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson has been postponed. BELLATOR will confirm a tournament alternate to face “Rumble” Johnson in the Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix as soon as possible.
BELLATOR 258: Archuleta vs. Pettis will go on as scheduled on Friday, May 7, live on SHOWTIME at 9p ET/6p PT. The event features the BELLATOR bantamweight world championship main event between champion Juan Archuleta and Sergio Pettis, a welterweight bout pitting Michael “Venom” Page against Derek Anderson, and a lightweight tilt between Patricky “Pitbull” and Peter Queally. Additional fights for the main card are to be announced.
Romero will become eligible to reapply for clearance to compete in the coming months, and we look forward to seeing him make his BELLATOR debut in the near future. BELLATOR MMA will look to reschedule the highly anticipated Johnson versus Romero matchup at a future date.
An alternate opponent who recently fought
After his victory at Bellator 257, fourth-ranked competitor Julius Anglickas was named an alternate for the Light Heavyweight Grand Prix and if he could pass his pre-fight medicals, it would seem he is first in line to replace Romero, but seeing as he just fought, it may be tough to get the clearance. One other name who could compete as an alternate is Karl Albrektsson who also won his last fight at Bellator 257 by unanimous decision over Viktor Nemkov.
While there will be a wait to see who faces Anthony Johnson next weekend, it’s important to note that Bellator also stated they will look to reschedule the fight between him and Yoel Romero at a later date.
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