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 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.

Results

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: $100,000
  • Johnny Eblen: $150,000 def. Anatoly Tokov: $75,000
  • Brennan Ward: $75,000 def. Sabah Homasi: $100,000
  • Lorenz Larkin: $75,000 def. Mukhamed Berkhamov: $33,000
  • Henry Corrales: $75,000 def. Akhmed Magomedov: $28,000
  • Steve Mowry: $70,000 draw Ali Isaev: $70,000
  • Chris Gonzalez: $100,000 def. Max Rohskopf: $30,000
  • Grant Neal: $66,000 def. Karl Albrektsson: $35,000
  • Diana Avsaragova: $32,000 def. Alejandra Lara: $60,000
  • Nikita Mikhailov: $32,000 def. Darrion Caldwell: $50,000
  • Neiman Gracie: $75,000 def. Dante Schiro: $20,000
  • Jaylon Bates: $20,000 def. Jornel Lugo: $35,000
  • Isaiah Hokit: $14,000 def. Peter Ishiguro: $3,000
  • Yusuf Karakaya: $6,000 def. Ethan Hughes: $5,000

    Viewership

After the event, it was announced that the event averaged 1.068 million viewers on CBS.