Yoel Romero has made a startling claim regarding former opponent Lyoto Machida.
While he’s now nearly 50 and past his prime, Romero was once regarded as an extremely dangerous competitor. Throughout his career, the Cuban faced some of the biggest names in MMA but never secured a championship, though he came close on multiple occasions.
During an appearance on Mike Perry’s OverDogs Podcast, Romero revealed that his knockout victory over Machida had serious, lasting consequences for “The Dragon.” They met in June 2015 at a UFC Fight Night event, where Romero finished him in the third round.
“Lyoto was too worn out,” he said. “Let’s put it this way — after he fought me, he wasn’t the same. He suffered brutal damage. You know he was in a coma, right? He was in a coma. I was worried about him. I kept talking to his managers because he was in a coma. That’s why I respect any gladiator that does this, because your life is at risk, bro.”
Following his loss to Romero, Machida went on to compete nine more times as a professional, winning four of those bouts. He retired from MMA in 2022 after a knockout loss to Fabian Edwards in Bellator.
“Soldier of God,” meanwhile, is coming off a knockout win in Dirty Boxing and is currently part of the Global Fight League roster.
