Emelianenko vs Bader II Set to Headline Bellator 290

It has been officially announced that Ryan Bader vs Fedor Emelianenko II Heavyweight title bout will headline the Bellator 290 event on February 4, 2023. 

Ryan Bader will put his Bellator heavyweight title on the line against the legend Fedor Emelianenko in the final bout of his career. This will be the last time Emelianenko will step inside the octagon. 

#Bellator290 on February 4th is going to be headlined by Ryan Bader vs Fedor Emilianenko 2.

In the co-main event Yoel Romero will challenge for the 205-lbs title against Vadim Nemkov or Corey Anderson.

This will be the third double-title-fight event in a row for @BellatorMMA! pic.twitter.com/aG89RM3PRI

— BellatorZone (@bellatorzone) November 18, 2022

Bellator’s broadcast partner CBS Sports was the first one to announce this bout. This PPV event will air on CBS, making it the first MMA event to air on the network in twelve years. Bellator 290 will also stream on Paramount+. 

Ryan Bader already defeated Emelianenko once back in 2019 to win the Bellator heavyweight title. Moreover, he finished this match in just 35 seconds. Bader’s last loss came against Cory Anderson last at Bellator 268. After that, he defeated Valentin Moldavsky and Cheick Kongo. 

On the other hand, Fedor Emelianenko hasn’t competed since 2021. After losing against Bader, he defeated Quinton Jackson and Timothy Johnson via first-round TKOs. 

The final chapter of Emelianenko’s career will be written on February 4, and now it remains to be seen whether he would be able to avenge one of the most humiliating losses of his career before he hangs up his boots.