Even at 47 years old, Yoel Romero under any rule set is a dangerous man.
The Olympic silver medalist in boxing and three-time UFC title challenger was the surprise star attraction of Saturday’s debut of Dirty Boxing Championship, the new combat sports promotion helmed by BKFC star Mike Perry.
Like much of Dirty Boxing’s debut show, which was held as a private event at an undisclosed location in Miami, Romero’s involvement was kept under wraps until he unexpectedly showed up to Friday’s weigh-in for a heavyweight showdown against Power Slap veteran Duane Crespo.
Perry announced the creation of Dirty Boxing Championship in July on the eve of his boxing match with Jake Paul. The promotion features hybrid rules bouts that mix the striking arts of boxing with elbows, superman punches, spinning backfists, 5-ounce gloves and limited ground-and-pound. Backing Perry in the endeavor is an executive team compromised of his longtime representatives at First Round Management, plus former Karate Combat executive Adam Kovacs and Josh McLean of Kanpai Media.
Romero vs. Crespo served as the main event for Saturday’s debut event, and as can be seen below, “The Soldier of God” didn’t need long to add Crespo to his highlight reel.
Romero (16-7 MMA) most recently fought in February under the PFL umbrella, defeating fellow UFC veteran Thiago Santos at the PFL vs. Bellator crossover show. A longtime contender in the UFC middleweight division, Romero has won three of his past four MMA appearances, falling short only in a shot at the Bellator light heavyweight title against Vadim Nemkov in June 2023.
Additional highlights of Perry’s Dirty Boxing Championship kickoff show can be seen below.
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