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#2. Former Bellator title challenger Benson Henderson still has fight left in him
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Benson Henderson had a great showing in front of his hometown crowd at Bellator 273. The former UFC and WEC lightweight champion was on a three-fight losing streak heading into the event.
After his most recent unanimous decision loss to Brent Primus, many questioned whether ‘Smooth’ would be competing in his final fight. His opponent was Islam Mamedov, who is no easy fight by any means. The 32-year-old trains under coach Khabib Nurmagomedov and was unbeaten in his last 20 fights.
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Henderson proved he still has plenty of fight left in him as he picked up a hard-fought split decision victory over Mamedov.
It’ll be interesting to see what’s next for ‘Smooth’ as it was the final bout on his contract and he will now enter free agency. He could choose to re-sign with the promotion and make another title run, test free agency or retire with the win.
#1. Ryan Bader retains his Bellator heavyweight championship to get one up on FedorTeam
Bellator 273 saw Ryan Bader unify the heavyweight championship after defeating interim champion Valentin Moldavsky by unanimous decision. ‘Darth’ vs. FedorTeam has unintentionally become one of the biggest rivalries in the promotion.
The rivalry began when Bader defeated FedorTeam leader Fedor Emelianenko in the finals of the heavyweight Grand Prix in 2019. He beat ‘The Last Emperor’ by knockout after just 36 seconds to win the vacant heavyweight championship.
In 2020, Emelianenko’s protege Vadim Nemkov finished Bader in the second round to become the light heavyweight champion. That was a big win as ‘Darth’ was unbeaten in eight fights and had been on a role since joining the promotion at the time.
Last weekend, Bader took advantage of his opportunity to get revenge on FedorTeam by defeating Moldavsky. It wasn't a slugfest by any means, but both had to be very strategic. They each had their moments throughout the bout, but it was Bader who got his hand raised.
