Ryan Bader - Sun Devil in Waiting
In the world of mixed martial arts, there are certain indivisible groups that stick together no matter what. There are several fighters who follow this mantra, including the guys from the Blackhouse gym, namely the Nogueira brothers and Anderson Silva- the fighters in Greg Jackson’s camp are known to band together and refuse to fight one another. In yet another example of a band of brothers, Ryan Bader is one of several fighters to come from a particular background. Bader is closely tied to a group of fellow Arizona State wrestlers that have burst on to the forefront of the MMA scene, and judging by their success so far, it is only the beginning for these Sun Devil wrestlers. While Bader isn’t the most successful Sun Devil in the UFC (that accolade goes to current UFC champ Cain Velasquez), he is putting his stamp on the Light Heavyweight division with each passing fight.
As previously mentioned, Bader was a talented wrestler for the Arizona State Sun Devils, but as many amateur wrestlers find, the air is thin at the top of competitive wrestling. Bader took the now familiar jump from the world of competitive wrestling to the world of mixed martial arts, and has actually exceeded his accomplishments on the wrestling mat in his short time inside the cage. While Bader had a great deal of success in the sport of wrestling, he is currently on a professional winning streak of 12 fights, winning his first 5 fights inside the Octagon.
To kick off his stint in the UFC, Bader was selected to be a contestant on the popular UFC reality show The Ultimate Fighter. Bader was a contestant in Season 8, where he was the first Light Heavyweight selected by Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Bader rolled through the competition, earning victories over Kyle Kingsbury, Tom Lawlor, and Eliot Marshall to earn a berth in the Ultimate Finale. Bader faced dangerous jiu-jitsu ace Vinny Magalhaes in the finale and made short work of the Brazilian, scoring a 1st round knockout to earn the UFC contract.
Upon earning the UFC contract, Ryan wasted very little time in making a name for himself, defeating Carmello Marrero and Eric Schaefer by unanimous decision. With a perfect 10-0 record to his name, Bader took a gigantic step up in competition when he squared off against TUF alumni Keith Jardine. Jardine has proven time and again that he is no push-over, and he hung tough against Bader until the 3rd round. In the 3rd round, Bader battered Jardine with a straight right hand, followed by a flying knee, and finally a left hook that crumpled Jardine into the corner. By compiling a perfect 4-0 record inside the Octagon, Ryan Bader had announced that he had arrived to take a shot at some high level competition.
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Ironically, Bader’s next opponent was set to be Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, brother of Bader’s coach on The Ultimate Fighter. Both Nogueira’s are renowned for being difficult to finish, but Bader gave it his best shot. Bader used a stiff jab to peck away at Little Nog and earn a unanimous decision. With 2 wins over serious competition, Bader had proven that he was ready for a Top 10 opponent.
Bader’s next opponent will be the toughest of his young career: Jon “Bones” Jones. Jones brings a skill set to the cage that is difficult to replicate in practice sessions, so Bader will need to be on the top of his game and be ready for anything. Bader is coming off of two signature wins in his career, but faces a tough test against Jones once the cage door closes. There have been rumors that the winner of the fight will be right in the thick of the title hunt in the UFC’s Light Heavyweight division. If his success as an NCAA wrestler has taught us anything, it’s that Ryan Bader can deliver in the clutch, so Jon Jones had better be ready for a battle on February 5th.
By Curt Heinrichs
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer