Newark, NJ — Moldovan heavyweight Alexander Romanov faces Jailton Almeida at UFC 302 this Saturday, with Brazil’s Almeida looking to return to the win column after being knocked out by Curtis Blaydes.
Romanov (17-2) might have a blueprint on “Razor” Blaydes’ performance, but he isn’t reading too much into Almeida’s UFC 299 loss it seems.
“I am not a judge, I don’t make some criticism for this guy. Everybody can win or lose,” Romanov told media outlets including Cageside Press during this week’s UFC 302 media day. “Don’t forget this, is the heavyweight division, and just one single punch can switch completely the situation in the cage.”
Almeida previously competed as a light heavyweight, but Romanov isn’t focused on the weight question. He’s also not too concerned about the wrestling of Almeida, despite numerous opening-round takedowns of a strong wrestler in Blaydes back in March.
“Here in the UFC we have a lot of good wrestlers, a lot of good grapplers. But everybody’s different, and you can take somebody down 100 times in the first round, but after that you don’t have enough power to keep him in the clinch.”
“It’s all about professionalism,” added, Romanov, who suggested that it all comes down to managing your gas tank. He might be right, given Blaydes put away Jailton Almeida early in the second round in Miami.
Romanov is a head coach at Rising Tide Hi Tech Martial Arts in Maryland, and with New Jersey not all that far away, he’s expecting a strong turnout of supporters in Newark this Saturday.
“One hundred percent. I promise you that in this arena will be a lot of my fans, because a lot of my friends, a lot of my training partners, a lot of my students will come and support me.”
Watch the full UFC 302 media day appearance by Alexander Romanov above.
