With Bellator’s light heavyweight division getting deeper, it appears Ryan Bader is looking to regain his 205-pound crown.

Former Bellator double champ Bader (27-6 MMA, 5-1 BMMA), who lost his light heavyweight title to Vadim Nemkov in August, was initially intending on bouncing back by defending his heavyweight belt.

But after some consideration, Bellator president Scott Coker says Bader has shifted gears and wants to avenge his loss to Nemkov, who handed him his first promotional defeat.

“We were definitely heading in that direction, then I got a call recently from his management saying that he would like to consider fighting Nemkov again,” Coker told MMA Junkie. “So to me, we haven’t flushed it out, but I think there is a desire for a rematch for that fight. If it happens, I’m not sure, but we’re definitely going to have a conversation with him about it because we were all about him getting into the heavyweight division and defending his belt, but that could change in the next couple of weeks.”

If Bader does end up rematching Nemkov, it will have been well over a year since he’s defended his heavyweight title. Bader retained his belt against Cheick Kongo in September 2019, when an accidental eye poke rendered Kongo unable to continue, resulting in a no contest.

So for the sake of the heavyweight division, Coker thinks Bader might end up having to vacate his title if he holds up the division for too long.

“I think he might have to make a decision at that point, but we’ll talk it through because he’s our champ, but we also want to let the belt continue on,” Coker said. “If you really want to fight Nemkov, we have to have a conversation at some point.”

He continued, “I think his management told us he’s basically very excited about these new signings and he’d love to fight these guys. Fight Nemkov, get his belt back. He’d also like to fight the other guys we just signed, whether it’s Yoel (Romero) or ‘Rumble’ (Johnson), but he’s ready to go. Ryan Bader’s afraid of nobody, believe me. This guy is a killer, too.”

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/scott-coker-ryan-bader-interested-in-vadim-nemkov-rematch

Rob Font put the bantamweight division on notice when he stopped former title challenger Marlon Moraes.

After being out for a year due to injury, Font (18-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) returned in impressive fashion when he knocked out Moraes in the first round at UFC Fight Night 183.

The win marked Font’s biggest to date, landing him in the No. 10 spot of the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings. Having won his past three in a row, Font is looking to make a title run and said he is only targeting the upper echelon of the division.

“Obviously I’m happy with the ‘W,’ but it’s onto the next one,” Font told MMA Junkie. “It’s only going to get harder from here, so I’m already back in the gym trying to help Calvin (Kattar) get ready for his fight. So I enjoyed it, but I know there’s more to it.”

Just as he did on fight night, Font proceeded to call out former two-time 135-pound champ T.J. Dillashaw, who will be eligible to compete in January, after serving a two-year suspension from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency for a failed drug test.

“He’s a former champion, so beating a guy like that, that has to say something,” Font said. “I know he’s looking for a fight. He’s not booked. Everybody else is booked, so it makes sense. It’ll be entertaining, so yeah, it’s definitely the fight to make.”

He continued, “This fight makes sense. I only want tough fights from here on out, and this is probably one of the toughest fights out there that realistically could be put together. This has nothing to do with the ‘W.’ I would have wanted this fight regardless of who I would have beat or how I won, so this is a great fight for the fans and gets me exactly where I need to be, and that’s close to that belt.”

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/rob-font-seeking-toughest-fights-moving-forward-tj-dillashaw

Kairat Akhmetov has been on the ONE Championship roster for a long time, but the former flyweight champion showed off some new tricks to defeat Dae Hwan Kin in the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

This catchweight contest was the main attraction at ONE: Collision Course II. The Kazakh fighter seemed more than happy to test his striking against an opponent with a background in Taekwondo and Muay Thai.

Akhmetov has spent a lot of time training at Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket and showcased some fast punching combinations and left kicks from the southpaw stance. By contrast Kim struggled to find his rhythm or range and spent the first five minutes in defensive mode.  

In the second stanza Akhmetov did more damage. A head kick opened up a cut on Kim’s head and the referee called in the doctor to take a look, with blood pouring profusely from the Korean’s facial area.

Kim tried to use side kicks to keep Akhmetov at bay but to no avail. With 30 seconds remaining in the round the Kazakh scored a double leg takedown with the former bantamweight title challenger powerless to prevent his opponent t from putting him on his back.

It left Kim with a mountain to climb in the final round and Akhmetov continued to score with strikes and takedowns. The Korean was in his back but the referee paused the action to check the cuts and he landed a solid up kick after the restart. 

It didn’t deter Akhmetov who retained top position and remained there until the final bell to take a clear cut decision win. He improves to 27-2 and is riding a three fight winning streak while Kim slips to 15-7-1.

Earlier in the evening Dae Sung Park (11-2) scored a split decision win over Amir Khan (13-8) in their lightweight contest. In welterweight action Raimond Magomedaliev (6-1) handed Edson Marques (9-1) the first loss of his career with a devastating first round knockout.

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ONE: Collision Course II results

• Muay Thai: Jamal Yusupov def. Samy Sana via Decision (Unanimous) 
• Kairat Akhmetov def. Dae Hwan Kim via Decision (Unanimous)
• Muay Thai: Momotaro def. Walter Goncalves by TKO (Injury) at 0:30 of round two
• Dae Sung Park def. Amir Khan by Decision (Split)
• Raimond Magomedaliev def. Edson Marques by KO (Punch) at 1:52 of round one
• Senzo Ikeda def. Liang Hui by Decision (Unanimous)

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/kairat-akhmetov-puts-on-a-striking-clinic-to-win-at-one-collision-course-ii

Nick Diaz hasn’t fought since losing to Anderson Silva at UFC 183 in January of 2015, put promises a comeback in 2021. (Diaz’s loss to Silva was later changed to a no contest after both fighters failed drug tests.)

Nate Diaz hasn’t fought since November of 2019, when he lost to Jorge Masvidal in the infamous UFC 244 “Baddest Motherf—er” belt bout. He also appears intent on fighting again in 2021.

So how did the two infamous Diaz brothers spend their quarantine during the global coronavirus pandemic in 2020? Well, Nate released a video for all to see.

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(Video courtesy of Nate Diaz)

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/video-how-nick-and-nate-diaz-spent-quarantine-in-2020

Amir Khan will fight with a heavy heart in his return to action.

Singapore’s Khan (13-7) takes on South Korean contender Dae Sung Park (10-2) at “ONE Championship 125: Collision Course II,” which airs today via tape delay, where he will be fighting not just for the victory, but for the memory of his father, who he recently lost to brain cancer.

“I’m sad, but I’m trying to stay strong at the same time,” he told ONE Championship ahead of fight night in Singapore. “I’ve just got to fight on. The show must go on.”

Khan’s father was a regular presence in his son’s corner at ONE Championship events and never missed a fight during the 26-year-old’s career. Now, still dealing with the news of his father’s passing, Khan must fight on without his biggest fan and inspiration by his side.

“I know he wants me to be strong, he doesn’t want me to be down because of this incident,” Khan continued. “The worst thing I can do is be doing nothing and being depressed. I know he doesn’t want me to be doing that, because I have a job this Friday. Get the job done, and then I can grieve later.”

A longtime contender in ONE Championship’s lightweight division, Khan is aiming to register back-to-back wins for the first time since 2018. His last outing saw him return to top form as he finished Rahul Raju via first-round TKO at “ONE Championship 116: Reign of Dynasties II” in October. Now he’s hoping to channel all of the conflicting energies of the last few days into one focused performance that will push him back toward the top of the lightweight rankings.

“I still want to make him proud,” he said. “This is the fight I should fight. Just fight my best out there, no hesitation, there’s nothing to hold me back. I feel the fight is not going to be harder than what I just experienced, so this is just going to bring out a different kind of savageness in me. I love him so much, and he did everything he can to make me the man I am today. I will continue his legacy.”

“ONE Championship 125: Collision Course II” streams on B/R Live Friday from Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/one-championship-125-amir-khan-fighting-for-fathers-memory