Ryan Bader back at light heavyweight; set to defend title against Vadim Nemkov in May

Bellator's two-division champion Ryan Bader is all set to return to action as he is slated to defend his light heavyweight title against Vadim Nemkov at Bellator 243 on 9th May in San Jose, California. The announcement of the fight was made during the broadcast of Bellator 238 from Los Angeles.

Bader's return to light heavyweight was subject of much speculation after he won the Bellator Heavyweight Grand Prix and defended the title against Cheick Kongo last year. Bader himself had been teasing a return to light heavyweight for a while now and he has finally decided to come back and defend his title against Nemkov in May. (h/t MMA Junkie)

“I’m a 205er, been a 205er my whole career, and I want to go back down there. I owe it to the division to come back down. I wouldn’t have held up the belt if I wasn’t gonna go back down there, and now’s the time.”

Bader's opponent Nemkov will get the chance to create a huge upset and establish himself as one of the biggest names in Bellator as he locks horns with Bader. The Russian is on a four fight winning streak and he defeated former Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho and former light heavyweight champions Phil Davis and Liam McGeary.