Bellator 290
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.
Background
The event marked the promotion's seventh visit to Inglewood and first since Bellator 263 in July 2021.The main event of the Bellator 290 featured MMA veteran and former List of [Pride Fighting Championships champions#Heavyweight Championship|PRIDE Heavyweight Champion] Fedor Emelianenko's last fight before his retirement. Emelianenko challenged Bellator Heavyweight champion Ryan Bader for the title. 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.
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.
A Bellator [Light Heavyweight World Championship] bout between current champion Vadim Nemkov and former UFC Middleweight title contender Yoel Romero was expected to take place at the event. However, Nemkov withdrew for undisclosed reasons and the bout was cancelled.
A Bellator Middleweight World Championship bout between current champion Johnny Eblen and Anatoly Tokov served as the new co-main event.
Neiman Gracie and Michael Lombardo were scheduled to face each other at this event. However, two weeks before the event, Lombardo was forced to withdraw from the bout and he was replaced by Dante Schiro.
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.
Reported payout
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.Ryan Bader: $150,000 def. Fedor Emelianenko: $100,000Johnny Eblen: $150,000 def. Anatoly Tokov: $75,000Brennan Ward: $75,000 def. Sabah Homasi: $100,000Lorenz Larkin: $75,000 def. Mukhamed Berkhamov: $33,000Henry Corrales: $75,000 def. Akhmed Magomedov: $28,000- Steve Mowry: $70,000 draw Ali Isaev: $70,000Chris Gonzalez: $100,000 def. Max Rohskopf: $30,000Grant Neal: $66,000 def. Karl Albrektsson: $35,000Diana Avsaragova: $32,000 def. Alejandra Lara: $60,000Nikita Mikhailov: $32,000 def. Darrion Caldwell: $50,000Neiman Gracie: $75,000 def. Dante Schiro: $20,000Jaylon Bates: $20,000 def. Jornel Lugo: $35,000Isaiah Hokit: $14,000 def. Peter Ishiguro: $3,000Yusuf Karakaya: $6,000 def. Ethan Hughes: $5,000