UFC 248: Israel Adesanya reveals why he isn't scared of Yoel Romero
Israel Adesanya is set for one of the biggest tests of his career as he takes on Yoel Romero at UFC 248 in the main event. Romero is widely regarded as the scariest man in the division - despite having lost three of his last four fights.
Two of those losses were to Robert Whittaker when challenging for the Middleweight title (though he missed weight on the second occasion) and one to Paulo Costa last year in a close fight that cemented the Brazilian as the next title contender.
However, Costa's injury has directly benefited Romero, who Adesanya demanded as his first title challenger. In a small video for UFC Australia/New Zealand Twitter, Adesanya explained why he isn't scared of the "boogeyman" Yoel Romero (H/T BJPENN.com):
“It’s me versus the ‘oogie boogeyman’ Yoel Romero. The guy that everyone’s scared of — especially Darren Till. You saw me call him out because I don’t have fear. Fear is different from danger, you have to understand. I’m a dangerous man. A lot of people fear him because of what they’ve been told or what they see in the media, but I’ve seen the guy bleed, I’ve seen him cheat, I’ve seen him hurt. I know he’s human and like I said, fear is different from danger and I’m a dangerous man.
When posed the question of whether Romero will end Adesanya's undefeated streak, the Champion simply responded by saying: "Keep dreaming"
“He is a dangerous man as well, I have to dot my i’s and cross my t’s. Will he be the first one to beat me? Keep dreaming b***h, ha!”.
This is going to be a huge test for Adesanya, who believes that he needs to beat Yoel Romero to add to his legacy and it's hard not to respect the mentality and self-confidence that he possesses.