Fedor Emelianenko’s final fight of his legendary career will air on network television in the U.S.
Promotional officials confirmed to MMA Fighting on Friday that Emelianenko will face champion Ryan Bader for the heavyweight title at Bellator 290, which takes place Feb. 4 at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The bout was first revealed by Bellator broadcast partner CBS Sports.
Bellator 290 will air on CBS, which will be the first time the promotion hosts an event on the network, and will also stream on Paramount+. An MMA event hasn’t aired on CBS since 2010.
Emelianenko and Bader will meet for the second time in a rematch from their heavyweight grand prix finale at Bellator 214 in January 2019, which Bader won via knockout in 35 seconds. Since then, “The Last Emperor” has bounced back with consecutive first-round knockout wins over Quintin Jackson and Timothy Johnson.
Bader, a former two-division champion, successfully defended his heavyweight title twice in 2022, picking up decision wins over Valentin Moldavsky and Cheick Kongo.