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Ryan Bader has found a home in the Bellator heavyweight division since becoming the heavyweight champion in 2019. He won the heavyweight championship after defeating MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko via knockout in the heavyweight Grand Prix finals. Since then, he has successfully retained the title on three occasions and hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down.
Bader has performed much better at heavyweight since moving up for the Grand Prix in 2018. Despite returning to 205 lbs for the light heavyweight Grand Prix, he stated that he intends to remain at heavyweight prematurely. His age and weight-cutting were a factor and it looks like he has made the correct decision.
He has won back-to-back fights via unanimous decision. He defeated Valentin Moldavsky in January and Cheick Kongo in May. Scott Coker hasn’t announced who his next challenger will be, which could signify that there are still ongoing discussions. There’s an opportunity for the division to make a statement and show why they deserve to challenge ‘Darth’ for the title. This list will look at five possible challengers for Ryan Bader in Bellator.
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#5. Former Bellator heavyweight champion Vitaly Minakov
For years, Vitaly Minakov was one of Bellator’s most dominant fighters. The Russian heavyweight joined the promotion in 2012 and it wasn’t long before he became a top contender. After earning three straight wins via KO/TKO, Minakov earned a title opportunity against then-heavyweight champion Alexander Volkov. He made quick work of Volkov and finished him with strikes in the first round to become the new champion.
‘The New Emperor’s heavyweight title reign was short-lived as he was eventually stripped of the title due to a contract dispute. Despite being stripped of the title, Minakov remained unbeaten in his MMA career and returned in 2019. Although he is 1-2 in his last three bouts, it’s important to note that they weren’t convincing losses.
Minakov lost a controversial decision to Cheick Kongo and most recently lost to Said Sowma after breaking his finger. He broke his finger towards the end of the third and final round, arguably winning the fight until the injury. Minakov would be an intriguing opponent for Bader because he is a former champion and was never defeated for the title.
#4. No.6-ranked Bellator heavyweight Tyrell Fortune
Tyrell Fortune has consistently been one of Bellator’s most impressive homegrown fighters. He is an entertaining fighter who finishes opponents, which helps the promotion when building a potential fight with Ryan Bader. Both fighters have trained with each other, so it'd be interesting to see which areas they feel they can exploit.
Of Fortune’s 12 wins, 8 have come via KO/TKO. After Linton Vassell defeated him and snapped his winning streak, Fortune bounced back with a first-round TKO win over Rakim Cleveland. It was a great performance that showed he is a fighter who doesn’t dwell on a loss and comes back stronger.
Bader vs. Fortune could be a suitable headliner if the promotion returns to the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Both fighters reside in the state of Arizona, so it would make for a great atmosphere. The Arizona fans rallied behind Bader when he fought Corey Anderson and Valentin Moldavsky, so it could be an appealing option to make this fight happen.
#3. No.1-ranked Bellator light heavyweight Corey Anderson
After defeating Bader in the light heavyweight Grand Prix, Corey Anderson could have his sights set on the Bellator heavyweight championship. They fought in the semi-finals of the Grand Prix during which Anderson finished the former light heavyweight champion with strikes to earn a first-round TKO.
It was a dominant performance for ‘Overtime.’ He countered Bader's hook with a right-hook of his own that stunned the former champion. He has since mentioned that he’d like to become a two-division champion, but will have to dethrone Vadim Nemkov first.
‘Overtime’ is coming off his no-contest against Nemkov in the Grand Prix finals after the two clashed heads. The promotion will book a rematch to crown the Grand Prix winner and award the $1 million prize money. If Anderson wins the Grand Prix, he could earn an immediate heavyweight title shot because of his decisive win over the champion.
Bader is unbeaten at heavyweight and could see the rematch as an opportunity to avenge his loss. With that in mind, ‘Darth’ vs. ‘Overtime’ 2 would be an intriguing bout.
#2. No.3-ranked Bellator heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Emelianenko is expected to conclude his legendary career this year when he competes in Bellator for the final time. He and Ryan Bader fought in the finals of the heavyweight Grand Prix in 2019. The fight didn’t last very long as Bader defeated Emelianenko via TKO in 36 seconds to win the vacant heavyweight championship.
Many consider him to be the greatest heavyweight in MMA history and he could prove it one more time. Scott Coker has mentioned in the past that he’d be open to Emelianenko challenging Bader in his retirement fight.
‘The Last Emperor’ has been on a retirement tour of sorts since re-signing with the promotion in 2019. He fought ‘Rampage’ Jackson in Tokyo, Japan, where he finished the former UFC light heavyweight champion in the first round. His most recent bout took place in Moscow, Russia, which saw him earn a highlight-reel knockout over Tim Johnson.
#1. No.2-ranked Bellator heavyweight Linton Vassell
No.2-ranked Bellator heavyweight Linton Vassell has experienced a great deal of success returning to the division in 2019. Aside from his unanimous decision loss to Valentin Moldavsky, he has distanced himself from the rest of the heavyweight contenders.
Vassell is currently riding a 4-fight winning streak and is 4-1 since returning to the division. The winning streak has been filled with plenty of excitement. His streak includes TKO wins over Sergei Kharitonov, Ronny Markes, and Tim Johnson and a split decision win over Tyrell Fortune.
‘Big Swarm’ is the most logical opponent for Bader at the moment, especially with the challenger’s success at heavyweight. Their first encounter took place at light heavyweight, when ‘Darth’ was the reigning light heavyweight champion. Vassell was coming into the fight having won three straight bouts, but was unable to dethrone Bader.
‘Darth’ finished ‘Big Swarm’ with strikes in the second round to earn a TKO win and earned his first successful title defense. A rematch between the two would be intriguing at this stage of their careers and with Vassell’s improvements at heavyweight.
