Yoel Romero is sticking with the light heavyweight division as he continues his fighting career at Bellator Paris later this year.
Promotion officials announced on Thursday that Romero (13-6), a multi-time middleweight title challenger in the UFC, will face Melvin Manhoef (32-15-1, 2NC) at 205lbs in the Bellator Paris main event.
The card takes place on May 6, 2022 at the Accor Arena in Paris, France.
Romero made his promotional debut for Bellator MMA last September, losing a split decision to former light heavyweight champ Phil Davis. “The Soldier of God” had been expected to take part in the promotion’s light heavyweight grand prix initially, only for medical issues to force him out of the tournament before he got started.
The loss to Davis dropped Romero to 0-4 in his last four fights, with two of those losses coming against UFC champions Robert Whittaker and Israel Adesanya.
This time around, the Cuban will face off with veteran Manhoef, who last competed in a losing effort against Corey Anderson in November 2020. That loss snapped a two-fight win streak for Manhoef, who twice competed against Rafael Carvalho for Bellator’s middleweight championship.
In something of a rare occurrence, Yoel Romero is actually the younger fighter in this match-up, as he’ll turn 45 by the time the fight rolls around. Melvin Manhoef will turn 46 a week after the contest.
Bellator Paris is headlined by a heavyweight title fight, as champ Ryan Bader will run it back with rival Cheick Kongo after their first meeting ended in a No Contest.
