Bellator 244: Ryan Bader looks to add to two-belt legacy; will Cyborg find a challenger?
What a timely acquisition for Bellator. No Bellator champion needs fresh challengers more than Bader does at light heavyweight. In strolls Anderson, who has been a perennial UFC contender. Anderson wasn't even a free agent; he requested his UFC release and was granted it. Remember, if Anderson had beaten Jan Blachowicz in February, he might have been next up for a title shot against Jones. Anderson lost that fight but was on a four-fight winning streak prior to that. He's just 30 years old. More than that, "Overtime" has the kind of skill set -- great wrestling and power in his hands -- to give Bader some trouble. If Bader beats Nemkov, it might be time to pull the trigger on that title fight.
In the main event, Ryan Bader and Vadim Nemkov successfully hit the light heavyweight title limit of 205 pounds.
The Bellator 244 ceremonial weigh-in video is expected to start at 11 a.m. ET, and the video is above.
Check out Bellator 244 weigh-in results below.
Main card (Paramount/DAZN at 10 p.m. ET)
Ryan Bader (204) vs. Vadim Nemkov (203.9)
Julia Budd (145.8) vs. Jessy Miele (147)*
Roy Nelson (264.9) vs. Valentin Moldavsky (234.6)
John Salter (186) vs. Andrew Kapel (185.1)
Prelims (YouTube at 7:15 p.m. ET)
Yaroslav Amosov (174.4) vs. Mark Lemminger (174.6)
Adam Piccolotti (155.3) vs. Sidney Outlaw (156)
Erik Perez (135.6) vs. Josh Hill (136)
Lucas Brennan (145.8) vs. Will Smith (143.7)
Vladimir Tokov (155.3) vs. Chris Gonzalez (156)
Vladyslav Parubchenko (149.6) vs. John de Jesus (149.1) — 150-pound catchweight
Weber Almeida (147.5) vs. Salim Mukhidinov (147.8) — 147-pound catchweight