As if there wasn't enough drama surrounding the middleweight division in the UFC, we have a bit more ahead of UFC 221. Yoel Romero, who was originally scheduled to fight Luke Rockhold for the interim middleweight championship, failed to make the 185-pound weight limit on Friday. Romero came in three pounds over the limit during his first weigh-in attempt, but he was afforded the two hours to attempt to drop down to 185. Unfortunately, though, he was unsuccessful in shedding the weight the second time around in Australia, coming in at 187 pounds.
With Romero failing to make the required weight, the fight will still go down at UFC 221 on Saturday evening if Rockhold accepts it, but the stakes will be altered a bit. Because of the weigh-in mishap, only Rockhold will have the opportunity to capture the interim middleweight championship. Should Romero emerge victorious, it would simply count as just another victory in his personal win column.
After the initial failed weigh-in attempt, Rockhold was obviously displeased with what had taken place.
Here's our interview with @LukeRockhold, and he's clearly feeling some type of way about @YoelRomeroMMA missing weight... #UFC221https://t.co/G5aQ44nScp
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) February 10, 2018
The UFC 221 middleweight championship main event has seemed cursed for a while now, and the events of Friday night are just another example. Initially, the target was a unification bout between Georges St-Pierre and interim champion Robert Whittaker. But when St-Pierre vacated the title shortly after his win over Michael Bisping at UFC 217, that was off the table and Whittaker was awarded the undisputed championship.
It was then determined that Whittaker would face Rockhold on Saturday at UFC 221 -- that was until the champion came down with a horrific staph infection in his stomach. Whittaker was forced to pull out of the championship matchup, and Romero stepped in on short notice for the interim title bout.
Now, there are no more interim middleweight championship aspirations for Romero who couldn't overcome the weight cut.
UFC 221 takes place from the Perth Arena in Perth, Australia, with the main card beginning at 10 p.m. ET on pay-per-view.