UFC 221 Results: Romero vs. Rockhold

Yoel Romero knocked out Luke Rockhold in the main event of UFC 221 at Perth Arena in Perth, Australia. The card took place on February 11, 2018 locally, corresponding to the February 10 broadcast date in the United States, and featured several significant wins for the region’s fighters.

View the official UFC 221 event archive on UFC.com.

Romero wins the fight without winning the belt

The main event had been arranged as an interim middleweight title contest after Robert Whittaker could not compete. Romero missed the championship weight limit, leaving only Rockhold eligible to receive the interim belt.

Romero’s power decided the fight in the third round. He knocked Rockhold down and followed with the finishing punches at 1:48. The result added a victory to Romero’s record, but it did not make him interim champion.

That distinction is central to the event’s story. Winning a scheduled title fight does not always mean winning a title when weight eligibility has changed the conditions. Whittaker remained the undisputed champion, and no interim belt was awarded to Romero.

Blaydes defeats Hunt; Tuivasa and Pedro finish

Curtis Blaydes defeated Mark Hunt by unanimous decision in the heavyweight co-main event. Hunt’s striking remained a threat, but Blaydes used wrestling and control to carry the fight through three rounds.

Tai Tuivasa stopped Cyril Asker with punches and elbows in the opening round. Jake Matthews defeated Li Jingliang by unanimous decision, and Tyson Pedro submitted Saparbek Safarov with a first-round kimura.

Adesanya arrives; Volkanovski continues his rise

Israel Adesanya made his UFC debut against Rob Wilkinson and won by second-round TKO. His striking finish introduced him to the promotion with a decisive result rather than a narrow first appearance.

Alexander Volkanovski stopped Jeremy Kennedy late in round two, while Jussier Formiga submitted Ben Nguyen in the third. Dong Hyun Kim, also known as Dong Hyun Ma, earned a split decision over Damien Brown. Ross Pearson, Jose Quinonez and Luke Jumeau won unanimous decisions to complete the twelve-fight card.

Complete UFC 221 results

• Yoel Romero defeated Luke Rockhold — KO (punches), R3, 1:48; Romero was ineligible to win the interim title after missing weight.
• Curtis Blaydes defeated Mark Hunt — unanimous decision, R3, 5:00.
• Tai Tuivasa defeated Cyril Asker — TKO (punches and elbows), R1, 2:18.
• Jake Matthews defeated Li Jingliang — unanimous decision, R3, 5:00.
• Tyson Pedro defeated Saparbek Safarov — submission (kimura), R1, 3:54.
• Dong Hyun Kim (Dong Hyun Ma) defeated Damien Brown — split decision, R3, 5:00.
• Israel Adesanya defeated Rob Wilkinson — TKO (knees and punches), R2, 3:37.
• Alexander Volkanovski defeated Jeremy Kennedy — TKO (punches), R2, 4:57.
• Jussier Formiga defeated Ben Nguyen — technical submission (rear-naked choke), R3, 1:43.
• Ross Pearson defeated Mizuto Hirota — unanimous decision, R3, 5:00.
• Jose Quinonez defeated Teruto Ishihara — unanimous decision, R3, 5:00.
• Luke Jumeau defeated Daichi Abe — unanimous decision, R3, 5:00.

Sources

UFC 221 official fight reports; Event results record.

Article Tags

UFC, UFC 221, Mixed Martial Arts