The Ultimate Fighting Championship has seen many warriors inside the octagon at different points in time. None of them has been as dismaying as the Cuban mixed martial artist and former freestyle wrestler, Yoel Romero.

The forty-two-year-old, “Soldier of God” has always proven that age is just a number. Although he has no UFC middleweight title on his name he still remains one of the most athletic and exciting fighters the UFC history has ever seen. Romeo’s potential to persistently learn and expand as a martial artist has been his pointer to triumph.

As a freestyle wrestler, Romero is a former world gold medalist and an Olympic silver medalist. He won six world and Olympic medals in total. As of August 19, 2019, he is no 3 in the UFC middleweight rankings. This article takes through the breathtaking journey of the fighter from freestyle wrestling to MMA and then signing the deal with UFC.

Yoel Romero- Wrestling Career

Yoel Romero has been working since the 1990s for the athlete he is today. He first represented Cuba at the FILA Wrestling World Championship. He came out victorious by defeating the 1996 gold medalist, Khadzhimurad Magomedov of Russia. Yoel also took part in the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics representing Cuba.

In 2000 the athlete won the silver medal in the freestyle competition. Yoel has beaten three different Olympic gold medal winners and five different world champions during his wrestling career. Among them were Americans Cael Sanderson and Les Gutches. Yoel missed out on winning the 2002 championship to Adam Saitiev who scored in the interim.

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Yoel Romero was honored in five total world championships. He missed the top places in 1997 and 2003 due to his injuries. The athlete has many other accomplishments to his name. He won a gold medal at the 2003 Pan American Games as well as various medal-winning finishes at the FILA Wrestling World Cup.

In the year 2006, the Cuban Wrestling Federation suspended the Olympic wrestler. It was for reportedly throwing his match against Mindorashvili at the 2005 World Championships.

In 2007 the Cuban won the Grand Prix of Germany. Post this Yoel decided to settle in Germany. During his days in Germany, he joined a professional wrestling league. The name of the league was Ringer-Bundesliga. Romero entered as an initial member of SV Johannis Nuremberg to the league. He also started helping and coaching the team. H then slowly transitioned his career to MMA.

UFC 241 results: Paulo Costa beats Yoel Romero in a dog fight

MMA Career

The caliber of the combat athlete could not remain hidden and soon he got to debut in MMA in December 2009. During his MMA career, Yoel was trained by Sergej Kuftin and Zike Simic. He won his debut match by defeating Sascha Weinpolter in Nuremberg, Germany. Romero then fought with Ricky Pulu and Michał Fijałka and defeated them by TKO.

Romero assembled an unbeaten record of 5–0 in various promotions throughout Germany and Poland. In 2011 he also signed a deal with Strikeforce and fought against Rafael Cavalcante. He lost that fight with a neck injury post which he did not return to the cage till 2013.

After this, the “Soldier of God” made his debut in 2013 against Clifford Starks and won the bout via KO. From then he has flamed a series of destruction in the sport.

Yoel Romero has embarked on two decades of excellence and continues to inspire people that there is no age for learning. His extreme dedication to the sport is proof of how he has come so far in his career. He still works relentlessly every day in camp to ensure both his stand-up and ground game are on point. These are his inspirational lines:- “God helped me with the desire to be great and the discipline to get myself ready, so I am an example of what can happen if you really put your mind to something and work hard for it”

We as fans would definitely want to see him getting stronger than ever and continue to stimulate the younger talent of today

THROWBACK: When Yoel Romero Kissed His Opponent After Knocking Him Out