Just like that, the Bader era for Bellator MMA and the Professional Fighters League is over.
On Wednesday, Ariel
Helwani reported that Ryan Bader
had parted ways with his organization, despite the heavyweight
having one more fight on his deal. The departure was amicable, and
Bader will now become a free agent. He confirmed this news on
social media
on Thursday, thanking both organizations for his time with them
while pitching his upcoming film “The Smashing Machine.”
“Just an update…officially a free agent,” Bader wrote. “PFL and our
team came up with terms we were both happy agreeing on with one
fight remaining on contract. The Bellator run was one for the
books. What a blast, and being surrounded by great people running
that org. I’m still open to different opportunities in the fight
game. The Smashing Machine movie will be released somewhat soon and
it will be an exciting year for sure. Big thanks to [Bellator
matchmaker] Mike Kogan for always treating the fighters with
respect which is sometimes rare in this game and [Bellator head]
Scott Coker and the rest of the Bellator team, what a time that
was. Of course [manager] David Martin for leading the way.”
After getting his walking papers from the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2016 despite
coming off two knockout wins, “Darth” went on a run in Bellator
that consisted of 12 fights, all for either championships or in
various grand prix. Bader kicked off his tenure in the new
promotion by winning the light heavyweight crown, and he maintained
it to become a simultaneous two-division champion by winning out
the heavyweight tournament and knocking out Fedor
Emelianenko. While he avenged a past knockout loss to Lyoto
Machida during his time with Bellator, Bader best can lay claim
as the only man to ever knock out all-time great Emelianenko twice.
He once set foot in the PFL cage, getting drummed out by the
towering Renan
Ferreira in 21 seconds in a champ vs. champ battle.