A big-time Bellator brawl has been booked for April 16th as promotional newcomers Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and Yoel “Soldier of God” Romero square off in the opening round of Bellator’s light heavyweight tournament which is set to happen at Bellator 257.
Dana White on Dormant ‘Rumble’ Comeback Talks: ‘Nothing Wrong with Being Retired’. By: Tristen Critchfield Jun, 22, 2020. Last year, Anthony Johnson revealed that he was targeting a UFC. Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson KO’s Bader in 1st round of UFC bout Originally published January 30, 2016 at 7:08 pm Updated January 30, 2016 at 7:57 pm Share story.
The Viacom-owned MMA promotion announced its upcoming schedule on Tuesday including the start of its Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix. According to Bellator, 8-man light heavyweight tournament will begin on April 9th at Bellator 256 with bouts featuring Ryan Bader vs Lyoto Machida and Corey Anderson vs Dovletdzhan.
One week later, the other two quarterfinal matches of the Light Heavyweight Grand Prix will take place at UFC 257. Current champion Vadim Nemkov will defend his belt against Phil Davis while the highly anticipated slugfest between Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and Yoel Romero will be happening earlier than expected.
The official bracket for Bellator’s upcoming LHW grand prix. Not gonna lie, Romero vs. Rumble already one of my most anticipated fights of 2021. pic.twitter.com/PMjnslLUyw
— Shaheen Al-Shatti (@shaunalshatti) February 9, 2021
Ever since both signed with Bellator last year, fans have salivated about a potential match-up between these former UFC championship contenders. Romero challenged for the middleweight title in four out of his last five fights in the UFC. Meanwhile, Rumble Johnson lost twice to Daniel Cormier while attempting to win the UFC light heavyweight belt.
Johnson was expected to return to the UFC last year after retiring in the aftermath of his UFC 210 loss to Cormier. However, he shocked the MMA world when he announced that he was signing with Bellator. On the other hand, Romero was one of the fighters cut by the UFC last year but he is coming off a losing effort against UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
Rumble went 5-2 during his second stint with the UFC, producing knockouts and Performance of the Night bonuses in each of his five wins. His only losses during that period came against Cormier. Romero finished his UFC career by losing four out of his last five bouts but even at the age of 43, the Cuban fighter is no walk in the park for anyone, not even Rumble Johnson.
Betting odds have been released for a potential light heavyweight bout in Bellator between Yoel Romero (@YoelRomeroMMA) and Anthony Johnson (@Anthony_Rumble). Who is your money on? 🤔 https://t.co/wUVo47fa7e
— bjpenndotcom (@bjpenndotcom) December 14, 2020
Current betting odds still have Romero as the favorite to beat Rumble Johnson. However, since we last looked at the betting lines last December, the odds have significantly narrowed.
The Solider of God was a -155 last December 16th at online sportsbook BetOnline with Rumble coming back at +135. However, as of the same oddsmaker’s betting odds as of February 9th, Romero’s odds have shortened to -120 while Johnson is now listed at negative money at -110. If BetOnline and the oddsmakers are correct, this one will be a toss-up and could go down to which fighter drops his big bombs first.
Romero and Johnson combine for 27 knockouts in 35 total wins or a 77.14% knockout rate. When both these fighters step inside a cage, they aren’t just looking to win fights. Rather, they come looking to take their opponent’s head off. With two prolific finishers, it won’t be a surprise if this bout ends prematurely.