Bellator_290
Bellator 290
Bellator mixed martial arts event in 2023
Bellator 290: Bader vs. Fedor 2 was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on February 4, 2023, at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, United States. The card aired live on CBS and Paramount Plus, the first time the promotion has aired live on the network and the first time MMA has been broadcast live on CBS since 2010.[1]
| Bellator 290: Bader vs. Fedor 2 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
The poster for Bellator 290: Bader vs. Fedor 2 | ||||
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | Bellator MMA | |||
| Date | February 4, 2023 (2023-February-04) | |||
| Venue | Kia Forum | |||
| City | Inglewood, California, United States | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
The event marked the promotion's seventh visit to Inglewood and first since Bellator 263 in July 2021.[1]
The main event of the Bellator 290 featured MMA veteran and former PRIDE Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko's last fight before his retirement. Emelianenko challenged Bellator Heavyweight champion Ryan Bader (also former Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion and The Ultimate Fighter: Team Nogueira vs. Team Mir light heavyweight winner) for the title.[2] The fight, which was the first event of 2023 for the promotion, was a rematch of their January 2019 encounter in which Bader defeated his opponent by TKO in the first round to win the Bellator Heavyweight World Championship.[3]
The event was shown live on CBS and Paramount Plus, marking the first time the promotion has done so and the first time MMA has been broadcast live on the network since 2010.[4]
A Bellator Light Heavyweight World Championship bout between current champion Vadim Nemkov (also the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix Champion) and former UFC Middleweight title contender Yoel Romero was expected to take place at the event.[5] However, Nemkov withdrew for undisclosed reasons and the bout was cancelled.[6]
A Bellator Middleweight World Championship bout between current champion Johnny Eblen and Anatoly Tokov served as the new co-main event.[7]
Neiman Gracie and Michael Lombardo were scheduled to face each other at this event.[8] However, two weeks before the event, Lombardo was forced to withdraw from the bout and he was replaced by Dante Schiro.[9]
At the weigh-ins, Diana Avsaragova missed weight for her bout, coming in at 128.8 pounds, 2.8 pounds over the flyweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at catchweight and Avsaragova was fined 25% of her purse which went to Alejandra Lara.[10]
| Main Card (CBS/Paramount+) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Heavyweight | Ryan Bader (c) | def. | Fedor Emelianenko | TKO (punches) | 1 | 2:30 | [lower-alpha 1] |
| Middleweight | Johnny Eblen (c) | def. | Anatoly Tokov | Decision (unanimous) (50–45, 49–46, 49–46) | 5 | 5:00 | [lower-alpha 2] |
| Welterweight | Brennan Ward | def. | Sabah Homasi | TKO (head kick and punches) | 2 | 1:34 | |
| Preliminary card (Youtube/Pluto TV) | |||||||
| Welterweight | Lorenz Larkin | def. | Mukhamed Berkhamov | KO (elbow) | 1 | 1:41 | |
| Featherweight | Henry Corrales | def. | Akhmed Magomedov | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Heavyweight | Ali Isaev | vs. | Steve Mowry | Draw (unanimous) (28–28, 28–28, 28–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Lightweight | Chris Gonzalez | def. | Max Rohskopf | TKO (punches) | 2 | 1:22 | |
| Light Heavyweight | Grant Neal | def. | Karl Albrektsson | Decision (split) (28–29, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Catchweight (128.8 lb) | Diana Avsaragova | def. | Alejandra Lara | Decision (split) (29–28, 28–29, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | [lower-alpha 3] |
| Bantamweight | Nikita Mikhailov | def. | Darrion Caldwell | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Postliminary card (Youtube) | |||||||
| Welterweight | Yusuf Karakaya | def. | Ethan Hughes | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Featherweight | Isaiah Hokit | def. | Peter Ishiguro | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Bantamweight | Jaylon Bates | def. | Jornel Lugo | Decision (split) (28–29, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Welterweight | Neiman Gracie | def. | Dante Schiro | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to the California State Athletic Commission. It is important to note the amounts do not include sponsor money, discretionary bonuses, viewership points or additional earnings.[12][13]
- Ryan Bader: $150,000 (no win bonus) def. Fedor Emelianenko: $100,000
- Johnny Eblen: $150,000 (no win bonus) def. Anatoly Tokov: $75,000
- Brennan Ward: $75,000 (no win bonus) def. Sabah Homasi: $100,000
- Lorenz Larkin: $75,000 (no win bonus) def. Mukhamed Berkhamov: $33,000
- Henry Corrales: $75,000 (no win bonus) def. Akhmed Magomedov: $28,000
- Steve Mowry: $70,000 draw Ali Isaev: $70,000
- Chris Gonzalez: $100,000 (includes $50,000 win bonus) def. Max Rohskopf: $30,000
- Grant Neal: $66,000 (includes $33,000 win bonus) def. Karl Albrektsson: $35,000
- Diana Avsaragova: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus) def. Alejandra Lara: $60,000
- Nikita Mikhailov: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus) def. Darrion Caldwell: $50,000
- Neiman Gracie: $75,000 (no win bonus) def. Dante Schiro: $20,000
- Jaylon Bates: $20,000 (no win bonus) def. Jornel Lugo: $35,000
- Isaiah Hokit: $14,000 (includes $7,000 win bonus) def. Peter Ishiguro: $3,000
- Yusuf Karakaya: $6,000 (includes $3,000 win bonus) def. Ethan Hughes: $5,000
After the event, it was announced that the event averaged 1.068 million viewers on CBS.[14]
- Brian Campbell (February 2, 2023). "Bellator 290 fight card -- Ryan Bader vs. Fedor Emelianenko: Three storylines to watch for debut on CBS". CBS. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
- "Fedor Emelianenko to fight Ryan Bader for Bellator title in retirement bout". ABC News. Retrieved 2022-11-18.
- "Bellator 290: Fedor Emelianenko set for retirement bout against Ryan Bader in February showdown on CBS". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2022-11-18.
- "Bellator MMA to make CBS debut with Fedor-Bader showdown". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-11-18.
- Lee, Alexander K. (2022-11-18). "Yoel Romero to fight Vadim Nemkov vs. Corey Anderson 2 winner at Bellator 290". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2022-11-21.
- Alexander K. Lee (2022-12-27). "Vadim Nemkov vs. Yoel Romero off Bellator 290, Johnny Eblen vs. Anatoly Tokov added as new co-main event". MMAFighting.com. Retrieved 2022-12-27.
- Brett Okamoto (2022-12-27). "Middleweight Johnny Eblen to defend title at Bellator 290". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2022-12-27.
- Bohn, Mike (2022-12-22). "On two-fight skid, Neiman Gracie draws Michael Lombardo at Bellator 290". MMA Junkie. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
- "Bellator 290 weigh-in results: Entire main card set; only one big miss". MMA Junkie. 2023-02-03. Retrieved 2023-02-03.
- "Bellator MMA | Bellator 290". www.bellator.com.
- Nolan King (2023-02-04). "Bellator 290 salaries: Ryan Bader, Johnny Eblen lead disclosed purses". MMA Junkie - USA Today. Retrieved 2023-02-04.
- Shaun Al-Shatti (2023-02-04). "Bellator 290 salaries: Fedor Emelianenko earns $100,000 purse for retirement fight". MMAFighting.com. Retrieved 2023-02-04.
- Damon Martin (February 7, 2023). "Bellator 290 draws just over 1 million average viewers on CBS". mmafighting.com.