Romero needs 4-5 months to heal, won't fight Paulo Costa at UFC 230
The highly anticipated fight between No. 1 middleweight contender Yoel Romero and the eighth-ranked Paulo Costa will not go down at UFC 230 as originally expected.
Appearing on "Ariel Helwani's MMA Show," Romero said his manager told UFC president Dana White that the Olympic silver medalist will fight Costa, but not in November due to a broken orbital bone.
"Maybe four or five months (of recovery)," Romero said, via ESPN's Greg Rosenstein. "The doctor said, 'Yoel needs more time.' You know me. If you give me somebody, I take it. But you need to be smart. When the doctor says, 'You're ready,' you can go. I'm waiting."
Romero suffered the injury in the first round of his split-decision loss to middleweight champ Robert Whittaker in May. The 41-year-old hopes to return late in the winter and is disappointed he will be unable to fight at UFC 230.
"I want to fight, but it is what it is," Romero said. "The doctor said, 'Yoel cannot fight.' I want to fight on this card, this show. Anytime you have an opportunity to fight at Madison Square Garden in New York, you're making history. But I need to wait."
Costa has won all four of his UFC fights via TKO.