Fedor Emelianenko Set To Face Ryan Bader In Retirement Bout At Bellator 290 In February
MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko will fight one final time, as he’s set to take on Bellator heavyweight champion, Ryan Bader, in a rematch at Bellator 290 on February 4 at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California which also will air on CBS.
CBS Sports’ Brent Brookhouse was the first to report the news of the matchup, confirming the booking with Bellator President Scott Coker who provided the following statement about the event airing on CBS, the first time MMA has been on the network since 2010.
“We have been working tirelessly on growing this brand into the global powerhouse it is today and a primetime slot on CBS has always been one of our key objectives,” Coker said. “With a healthy roster full of many of the world’s very best fighters, along with elite up-and-coming prospects and legends of the game, I’m very excited to showcase this event on the most-watched network in America.”
Let’s see that in slow-mo! —-
Fedor Emelianenko remains undefeated at home.—-#Bellator269 pic.twitter.com/vOaZOSuMCS
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) October 23, 2021
The pair’s first meeting went down back at Bellator 214 in January 2019, where Bader defeated Emelianenko via a TKO only 35 seconds into the bout. Brookhouse additionally reported that former three-time UFC title challenger, Yoel Romero, will face the winner of tonight’s rematch between Bellator light heavyweight champion, Vadim Nemkov, and Corey Anderson, in the co-main event of Bellator 290 in February as well.
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