Watch: Romero cracks Weidman with flying knee for 3rd-round TKO
El BRUTAL TKO con el que Romero derrota a Weidman en la #UFC205 #FullUFC pic.twitter.com/GL4kx7XknU
— TVMAX Deporte (@tvmaxdeporte) November 13, 2016
Yoel Romero made sure there was nothing standing between him and UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping.
Competing on the main card of UFC 205 in New York City on Saturday, Romero connected with a flying knee to Chris Weidman's head that left the former titleholder lying bloodied on the mat well after fight was over. The third-round finish put an exclamation point on Romero's status as the No. 1 contender at 185 pounds.
Romero used his post-fight interview to call out Bisping, and the champ responded with a one-finger salute:
What @bisping thinks about Yoel Romero haha pic.twitter.com/EZt5uXkX4v
— Chris Garcia (@TheCwai) November 13, 2016
The action was likely even on the scorecards going into the final round, with Romero taking advantage of his wrestling in Round 2 to catch up with Weidman after a lackluster opening frame. Just 15 seconds into Round 3, Weidman went in for a takedown from distance and paid for it when Romero caught him with his thunderous knee strike.
Several unnecessary punches followed before referee Mario Yamasaki waved off the bout at the 24-second mark of the third round.
It was a bitter result for Weidman, a New York native who had long campaigned to bring MMA to his home state. This was his first fight since last December, when he lost the middleweight championship to Luke Rockhold also by TKO. It is Weidman's second straight loss after starting his MMA career with 13 straight victories.