Rolly Romero: Car wreck, desired Davis shot and Linares’ arrogance
Rolly Romero defends his interim WBA title against Anthony Yigit on July 17. He hopes for a shot at either Gervonta Davis, Devin Haney, or Jorge Linares.
Rolly Romero doesn’t pull any punches in or out of the ring. His blunt honesty rubs some people the wrong way, but he doesn’t care. He’s a unique individual that holds nothing back.
If he likes you, Romero sports a warm smile and a joking attitude full of laughs. If he doesn’t like you, he will be sure to let you know with a few choice words and possibly a desire to beat you up in the ring. There are some fighters on Romero’s naughty list, and he’s trying to pick a fight.
The 25-year-old Romero (13-0, 11 KOs) is coming off arguably the best fight of his boxing career. He blasted Avery Sparrow out in seven rounds in January and returns to the ring against former title contender Anthony Yigit on the July 17 undercard of Jermall Charlo vs. Brian Castano.
Yigit is a good test for Romero but wasn’t his original opponent. Romero was supposed to fight Austin Dulay, but Dulay pulled out late due to injury. Romero shared his initial reaction to the news with FanSided.
“That f**king p***y,” exclaimed Romero. “I was really pissed off. I was very disappointed. I mean, you get a world title shot, and you pull out, like, that makes you a b**ch.”
Romero obviously isn’t a fan of Dulay. There’s no reason to doubt Dulay’s injury, but Romero offered a rationale for his disdain of Dulay.
“Look, I’m gonna tell you like this, at the beginning of camp, I broke both my f**king ankles,” said Romero. “Last week, I was in a f**king car accident. I totaled my car completely, and I’m still fighting because I give two s**ts.”
Last-minute replacements are becoming a trend for Romero going into fights. Sparrow replaced Justin Pauldo after Pauldo badly blew the weight limit. Fortunately, Mayweather Promotions was again well prepared and had Anthony Yigit on standby.
Rolly Romero looks to add Anthony Yigit’s name to his win column for a possible shot at Gervonta Davis
Yigit (24-1-1, 8 KOs) hasn’t fought since 2019 but is a former Olympian and challenged Ivan Baranchyk for a title in 2018. He’s a talented southpaw fighter that has been forgotten about due to inactivity.
Romero has a lot riding on this fight. He views Yigit as an important stepping stone that could lead to undefeated superstar Gervonta Davis. Davis has steamrolled all of his opponents, most recently Mario Barrios.
Davis is also signed to Mayweather Promotions. Conventional wisdom has it that Davis vs. Romero should be easy to make. Romero agrees.
“Floyd [Mayweather ]said that Gervonta Davis is only fighting PBC fighter, well I’m a PBC fighter, so that’s next,” said Romero.
Davis is a hot name in boxing right now. Nailing down a fight with him won’t be easy for anybody, but Romero does have an edge because of his WBA interim lightweight title and promotional and managerial affiliation. Davis has the “regular” version of the WBA division title.
If Romero doesn’t get Davis next, he has no problem fighting either Devin Haney or Jorge Linares. He has ill-will towards both boxers for differing reasons.
“Well, Devin Hainey, just the social media s**t,” said Romero. “He a b**ch, but Jorge Linares, I actually had trained with Jorge Linares, you know, back when I was still an amateur before I turned pro back when we were both at [Ismael] Salas. And I’ll tell you this, he’s the most arrogant big-headed motherf**ker I’ve ever met.”
Romero true to form isn’t shy about calling out fighters he has an issue with. His problem with Yigit is that he stands in his way of progressing. Romero certainly seems determined to continue his climb towards the top by any means necessary.
Next. Paul and Woodley made an incredibly stupid bet. dark