Ryan DuWayne Bader was born on June 7,1983 and is an American mixed martial artist currently signed to Bellator MMA where he is the current Bellator Heavyweight Champion, the former Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion, and the winner of the 2018 Bellator Heavyweight World Grand Prix Tournament.
55 Facts About Ryan Bader
2.
At Bellator 214, Bader became the first fighter in Bellator history to become champion in two weight divisions simultaneously.
3.
Ryan Bader was born in Reno, Nevada and started wrestling at the age of seven.
4.
Ryan Bader entered mixed martial arts after a successful career in amateur wrestling.
5.
Ryan Bader attended Robert McQueen High School where he won two state championships and was ranked as high as fourth in the country for wrestling.
6.
In football, Ryan Bader was the 2001 Nevada Defensive Player of the Year and helped the McQueen Lancers win the Nevada state championship title.
7.
Ryan Bader ultimately attended Arizona State University on a wrestling scholarship, where he was college teammates with former UFC Heavyweight Champion Cain Velasquez and CB Dollaway.
8.
Ryan Bader was a two-time All-American, placing fourth in 2004 as a sophomore and seventh in 2006 as a senior at the NCAA national tournament.
9.
Ryan Bader began training at Arizona Combat Sports in early 2007.
10.
At the finale, Ryan Bader defeated Magalhaes by way of a quick, first-round knockout, earning the title of "The Ultimate Fighter" and winning the traditional "six-figure UFC contract".
11.
An overhand right dropped Magalhaes, and Ryan Bader followed up with strikes on the ground to take the win, less than halfway through the first round.
12.
Shortly after the Marrero fight, Ryan Bader appeared alongside fellow Ultimate Fighter 8 winner Efrain Escudero in the UFC's sixth video game, UFC 2009 Undisputed.
13.
Ryan Bader returned against Eric Schafer on October 24,2009, at UFC 104.
14.
Ryan Bader scored a sharp jab on the tiring Jardine, which set up a flying knee to the chest and a left hook at 2:10 of the third round to secure a KO victory for Ryan Bader.
15.
Four months after his victory over Nogueira, Ryan Bader fought fellow rising prospect Jon Jones on February 5,2011, at UFC 126, where he received the first loss of his MMA career after tapping out to a modified guillotine choke in the second round.
16.
Ryan Bader then faced Jason Brilz on November 19,2011, at UFC 139.
17.
Ryan Bader defeated Brilz at 1:17 of the first round via KO, landing a straight right behind Brilz's ear causing him to immediately fall to the mat face-first.
18.
Ryan Bader next faced former Light Heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson on February 26,2012, at UFC 144.
19.
Ryan Bader faced Lyoto Machida on August 4,2012, at UFC on Fox: Shogun vs Vera.
20.
Ryan Bader was defeated via KO at 1:32 in the second round, after rushing in and being caught with a punch.
21.
Ryan Bader faced former title challenger Vladimir Matyushenko on January 26,2013, at UFC on Fox 6.
22.
Ryan Bader won the fight via guillotine choke submission at just 50 seconds of the first round, earning his first Submission of the Night honors, and having the fastest UFC Light Heavyweight submission.
23.
Ryan Bader was expected to face Glover Teixeira on May 25,2013, at UFC 160.
24.
However, Ryan Bader pulled out of the bout citing an injury and was replaced by James Te-Huna.
25.
Ryan Bader faced Anthony Perosh on December 7,2013, at UFC Fight Night 33.
26.
Ryan Bader dominated Perosh all 15 minutes of the three round contest using his superior wrestling.
27.
Ryan Bader faced Rafael Cavalcante on June 14,2014, at UFC 174.
28.
Ryan Bader's wrestling was displayed , controlling Feijao the majority of the bout.
29.
Ryan Bader faced Ovince St Preux on August 16,2014, at UFC Fight Night: Ryan Bader vs St Preux.
30.
Ryan Bader fought Phil Davis on January 24,2015, at UFC on Fox 14.
31.
Ryan Bader was expected to face Daniel Cormier on June 6,2015, at UFC Fight Night 68.
32.
Ryan Bader faced Rashad Evans on October 3,2015, at UFC 192.
33.
Ryan Bader faced Anthony Johnson in the main event on January 30,2016, at UFC on Fox 18.
34.
Ryan Bader's winning streak was interrupted, as he lost the fight via knockout in the first round.
35.
Ryan Bader next faced Ilir Latifi on September 3,2016, at UFC Fight Night 93.
36.
Ryan Bader won the fight via knockout in the second round and was awarded a Performance of the Night bonus.
37.
Ryan Bader faced Antonio Rogerio Nogueira in a rematch on November 19,2016, in the main event at UFC Fight Night 100.
38.
Ryan Bader won the fight by TKO in the third round with ground and pound after dominating Nogueira on the mat.
39.
Ryan Bader's fight against Nogueira was the last on his UFC contract and afterward he was a free agent.
40.
On March 21,2017, Ryan Bader announced that the UFC had not sought to match Bellator's offer and that he had officially signed a six-fight deal with Bellator MMA.
41.
Ryan Bader was officially unveiled as a fighter for the company at Bellator 175.
42.
However, Lawal pulled out of the fight and Ryan Bader faced Bellator Light Heavyweight champion Phil Davis in a rematch.
43.
Ryan Bader won the rematch again by split decision to become the new Light Heavyweight champion.
44.
Ryan Bader won the fight via TKO in the second round.
45.
Ryan Bader faced Muhammed Lawal in the Bellator Heavyweight Grand Prix for the Bellator Heavyweight championship at Bellator 199 on May 12,2018.
46.
Ryan Bader won the fight via TKO 15 seconds into the first round.
47.
Ryan Bader faced Matt Mitrione in the semi-finals at Bellator 207 on October 12,2018.
48.
Ryan Bader claimed the title by winning via knockout 35 seconds into the first round, thus becoming the first simultaneous two-weight champion in Bellator history.
49.
On July 11,2019, it was announced that Ryan Bader is set to make his first heavyweight title defense against Cheick Kongo.
50.
The bout ended in a no contest at 3:52 of the first round when Ryan Bader landed an accidental eye poke on Kongo that rendered him unable to continue, with Ryan Bader retaining his title.
51.
On February 9,2021, it was announced that Ryan Bader would be participating in the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix.
52.
Ryan Bader lost the fight via technical knockout less than a minute into round one.
53.
Ryan Bader defended his Heavyweight title against Bellator Interim Heavyweight World Champion Valentin Moldavsky on January 29,2022 at Bellator 273.
54.
Ryan Bader defended his title in a rematch against Fedor Emelianenko on February 4,2023 at Bellator 290.
55.
Ryan Bader won the bout via ground and pound TKO in the first round.