Anthony Johnson issues statement after Yoel Romero pulled from Bellator light heavyweight tournament

Anthony Johnson issued a statement after Yoel Romero was pulled from the upcoming Bellator Light Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament.

Johnson vs. Romero was one of four scheduled quarterfinal bouts in the Bellator Light Heavyweight Grand Prix and it was set to go down next Friday, May 7 for five rounds or less. Unfortunately for both men, the fight will not go on as planned after Romero failed a pre-fight medical scan and was removed from the tournament entirely. That means Johnson currently is without an opponent, though Bellator is expected to name a replacement soon, with Julius Anglickas the favorite to take Romero’s spot in the tourney.

Taking to his social media to react following the news that Romero has been pulled from the tournament, Johnson issued a short statement on the news the fight was scrapped.

“@YoelRomeroMMA Broken heart with whatever the issue is I hope Yoel gets back on his feet and able to compete again very soon. Sorry to the fans for the disappointment.”

Johnson vs. Romero was arguably the best matchup among the four quarterfinals that Bellator booked for the 205lbs tournament. Both men have massive power in their limbs and someone was likely going to get knocked out in a devastating fashion had they fought.

However, the fight will not take place as scheduled anytime soon after Romero fell out of the fight. It’s very disappointing that this fight won’t take place, both for the fans and for the fighters, too, both of who likely trained very hard for this fight. Hopefully, whatever medical issue was discovered with Romero can be figured out and he can return soon. As for Johnson, hopefully, Bellator is able to establish a replacement opponent in short order.

Who do you want to see Anthony Johnson fight now that Yoel Romero has been pulled from the Bellator Light Heavyweight Grand Prix?