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Ryan Bader recently shared his thoughts about his fighting future after being granted his PFL release. He noted that his release doesn't signal his retirement and expressed interest in exploring free agency.
Bader had achieved plenty of success after he departed the UFC to join Bellator in 2017. He won the light heavyweight championship in his promotional debut and then moved up to heavyweight and won the Grand Prix to become a simultaneous two-division champion. His final bout for the promotion took place at the PFL vs. Bellator event, where he lost to Renan Ferreira via first-round knockout in February 2024.
During his latest appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Bader admitted that at this stage of his career, he wants to pursue opportunities that excite him and is open to offers outside of MMA. 'Darth' mentioned that he would like to compete at least once more, so he can end his career on his terms:
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"I'm 41 years old. I'm at that point now where I could be done, but I'm looking for something fun. These different opportunities, whether that's MMA, grappling, boxing, anything... I was thinking about being done entirely, but now that I got my release and we see some of these new opportunities come to our desk, I kind of want to get at least one more fight in and go out on my own terms."
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Check out Ryan Bader's comments below:
Ryan Bader reveals Rizin expressed interest in signing him
During the aforementioned appearance, Ryan Bader also revealed that Rizin had expressed interest and his management has been in talks about potentially signing with the promotion.
Bader mentioned that competing in Japan would interest him, especially at the famous Saitama Super Arena, and noted that timing could also be ideal:
"We've been talking with Rizin a little bit... Rizin's kind of intriguing. With 'The Smashing Machine' being filmed and about Pride and Saitama Super Arena... The movie coming out in the fall, it would be a cool little segue to go and potentially fight in Japan after that. And that for me just thinking about that, I had interest in it. It sounds fun."
Check out Ryan Bader's comments below (40:20):
