Ryan
Bader will return to the light heavyweight division to defend
his title against Vadim
Nemkov at Bellator 244 on Aug. 21.
Multiple outlets confirmed the booking following an initial report
from sports.ru. The
fight has not been finalized, but bout agreements have been issued
to both athletes. Bellator 244 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in
Uncasville, Connecticut. The card will air on Paramount Network and
Dazn.
Bader and Nemkov were originally scheduled to square off on May 9
before the COVID-19 pandemic forced Bellator to put its event
schedule on hold.
Bader hasn’t defended his light heavyweight belt since a
second-round TKO of Linton
Vassell at Bellator 186 on Nov. 3, 2017. He then became a
two-division champion by besting Muhammed
Lawal, Matt
Mitrione and Fedor
Emelianenko to win the promotion’s heavyweight grand prix. The
Power MMA Team standout’s first heavyweight defense at Bellator 226
ended in a no contest when he poked Cheick Kongo
in the eye last September.
Nemkov, 28, has emerged as a top contender thanks to a six-bout
winning streak that includes four triumphs in Bellator MMA. Most
recently, the Russian submitted former middleweight king Rafael
Carvalho in the second frame at Bellator 230. His resume also
includes notable wins over former Bellator light heavyweight
champions Phil Davis
and Liam
McGeary as well as ex-PFL heavyweight king Philipe
Lins.