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UFC

Dana White confirms Yoel Romero will face Michael Bisping next

By Damon Martin FoxSports
Published | Updated
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Top-ranked contender Yoel Romero will get the next shot at middleweight champion Michael Bisping later this year.

According to UFC president Dana White, Romero has waited long enough and he will get the chance to face Bisping once the champion is healthy enough to return to action.

Bisping just had knee surgery earlier this week to clear up some minor problems, but the defending champion has previously stated that he expected to return to the UFC around May.

Bisping had previously mentioned possible matchups against Georges St-Pierre, welterweight champion Tyron Woodley or even a second fight against former middleweight king Anderson Silva but it appears none of those fights will happen until after he faces Romero.

"Yoel Romero's been floating out there a long time waiting for a title shot. Bisping wanted to do that grudge match with Dan Henderson. It was going to be Dan Henderson's last fight. I've always shown Henderson the respect I felt he deserved. He's a guy who's fought everybody out there. So we did that fight and he's got to defend his title now against the No. 1 contender," White revealed on the latest "UFC Unfiltered" podcast.

"If you look at what Romero did to Chris Weidman, he absolutely deserves the shot."

Romero has been on a tear since arriving in the UFC from Strikeforce while putting together an undefeated record with eight consecutive wins including a vicious third round knockout over former champ Chris Weidman last November.

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Romero also holds wins over Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza as well as former light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida.

Now the Cuban-born Olympic silver medalist in freestyle wrestling will go for UFC gold when he returns in 2017 to face Bisping with the middleweight title on the line.