Ryan Bader managed to become a two-weight world champion in Bellator at both heavyweight and light heavyweight. The longtime MMA fighter eventually had a choice to make in terms of where he wanted his future.
He lost his light heavyweight title back in 2020 but remains the Bellator MMA heavyweight champion. Ryan Bader is set to defend his title at Bellator 273.
“I considered myself exclusively a heavyweight after that light heavyweight loss (to Vadim Nemkov), so everything at light heavyweight was just kind of fun, kind of gravy,” Bader, who was eliminated in the tournament semifinals last October, told theScore. “But now, back to where I belong and where I plan on fighting out the rest of my career.”
“I do see that chapter closed for now,” Bader said.
Ryan Bader was interested in moving up to heavyweight in the past. The weight difference in the divisions scared him off. In MMA heavyweights can weigh up to 265, while light heavyweights are capped at 205.
“One thing that kind of deterred me in the past of fighting at heavyweight was, ‘Alright, what happens if I run across these guys that are 250-plus?'” Bader said. “Matt Mitrione – who I fought in 2018 – was that guy, and I felt awesome in there. I felt just as strong, if not stronger, my cardio felt like it was better than these heavyweights, I could see everything, I felt faster.
“That kind of was a tipping point where I said, ‘OK, I can do this heavyweight thing for sure.'”
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