Once it became obvious that Paulo Costa wouldn't be able to compete March 7 because of a biceps injury, Israel Adesanya didn't hesitate calling out the "boogeyman" of the middleweight division — Yoel Romero.
Well, the time has come for "The Last Stylebender" to show and prove against one of the most feared fighters in mixed martial arts. Adesanya will finally get that chance Saturday night when he puts his middleweight title on the line against Romero in the main event of UFC 248 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, live on pay-per-view.
"Why should you watch UFC 248? Because I said so," Adesanya recently told UFC Australia/New Zealand. "Because it's me versus the oogey-boogeyman, Yoel Romero, the guy that everyone's afraid of — especially Darren Till. You see me ... I call 'em out. I don't have fear.
"Fear is different from danger, you have to understand," he continued. "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."
The 30-year-old Adesanya (18-0) is coming off an incredible 2019 that had him running through Anderson Silva and Kelvin Gastelum via unanimous decision before blasting Robert Whittaker with a second-round KO in October.
Romero (13-4) didn't have as impactful of a year, as he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Costa in August in his lone fight of 2019. At 41-years-old and having lost three of his last four bouts, this could very well be Romero's last chance to wrap a title around his waist — not to mention, add the growing legend of Adesanya to his list of victims, which includes Luke Rockhold, Chris Weidman, Ronaldo Souza and Lyoto Machida to name a few.
Here's everything you need to know about Adesanya vs. Romero at UFC 248, including its starting time, cost, streaming info and the rest of the fights on the card.
When is Israel Adesanya's fight vs. Yoel Romero in UFC 248?
- Date: Saturday, March. 7
- Early prelims: 6:30 p.m. ET
- Prelims: 8 p.m. ET
- Main card: 10 p.m. ET
UFC 248 takes place Saturday night, March 7. Early prelims will be shown at 6:30 p.m. on UFC Fight Pass, followed by prelims coverage on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET. The pay-per-view kicks off at 10 p.m. ET, with Adesanya and Romero expected to enter the octagon at 12:15 a.m. ET approximately.
UFC 248 Adesanya vs. Romero TV channel, streaming info
- Early prelims: UFC Fight Pass
- Prelims: ESPN
- Main card PPV: ESPN+
How much does UFC 248 cost on pay per view?
- UFC 248 Adesanya vs. Romero price: $64.99
The main card pay-per-view can be purchased for $64.99 for ESPN+ subscribers. Every UFC PPV can be ordered through ESPN+, which requires a subscription.
Where is UFC 248 taking place?
UFC 248 will take place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. This marks Adesanya's first fight at the venue and second overall pro fight in Las Vegas — he defeated Brad Tavares in the "The Ultimate Fighter: Undefeated Finale" at the Pearl Theatre in July 2018. Meanwhile, Romero is no stranger to "Sin City," as this will be his second pro fight at T-Mobile Arena and fourth overall bout in Vegas.
Adesanya vs. Romero odds
According to Bovada's latest odds, Adesanya is slight favorite, coming in at -285, signaling that you'd need to bet $285 to win $100. Romero is a +225 underdog, meaning if you were to bet $100, you would net $225.
UFC 248 fight card
Main card
- Israel Adesanya vs. Yoel Romero for Adesanya's middleweight title
- Zhang Weili vs. Joanna Jędrzejczyk for Zhang's women's strawweight title
- Beneil Dariush vs. Drakkar Klose; Lightweight
- Neil Magny vs. Li Jingliang; Welterweight
- Alex Oliveira vs. Max Griffin; Welterweight
Preliminary card
- Sean O'Malley vs. Jose Alberto Quinonez; Bantamweight
- Mark Madsen vs. Austin Hubbard; Lightweight
- Rodolfo Vieira vs. Saparbek Safarov; Middleweight
- Gerald Meerschaert vs. Deron Winn; Middleweight