LAS VEGAS — Michael Bisping didn’t mince words when he picked Robert Whittaker to defeat Yoel Romero at UFC 213 for the interim middleweight belt, but the champ’s prediction isn’t fazing Romero.
The No. 1-ranked middleweight contender took the high road when speaking to reporters at UFC 213 Ultimate Media Day on Thursday, and explained why Bisping’s words don’t bother him as he gets set to fight Whittaker.
“Not everybody likes everyone else,” Romero said through an interpreter. “I guess Mr. Bisping doesn’t like me very much, or simply that’s the way he sees the fight going. Maybe in his view, the favorite for him would be Robert Whittaker. But I’ve said it many times to many people, it’s not what man wants, it’s who the Creator of life decides.”
Romero wasn’t shy about talking trash to Bisping in the past. After defeating Chris Weidman at UFC 205, he called out Bisping in the octagon, who responded by flipping a double-bird. But this time, Romero decided to turn the other cheek when asked if he liked Bisping.
“I follow God. God says love your neighbor as you love yourself,” Romero said. “If I need to donate an organ to Mr. Bisping, he can count on it. But that doesn’t take away that if we see each other’s face one day in the octagon, I will do everything in my power to get that victory.”
Romero also was highly introspective and philosophical when discussing how he’s come to terms with fighting for an interim belt instead of the real one.
“I’m the type of person that reasons with the times and moments that present themselves in my life,” Romero said. “The moments and time do not belong to man. It is God who changes time. It is God who creates time. You have to deal with that. You have to mold yourself to that time.
“If you’re fighting for the interim belt, it’s because God wants that to be your time. The time will come that I will fight for another belt. I need to accept what God gives me. Even if I don’t understand, he knows why. He knows why the night comes. He knows why the sun was made for the daylight. He knows why spring was made.”
