Corey Anderson has started his Bellator career in the right way. ‘Overtime’ pulled off a dominant TKO win over Melvin Manhoef in his debut with the promotion.

He showcased his strong ground game, taking down Manhoef at will. Once on the canvas, ‘Overtime’ put in some vicious elbows and punches until the referee had seen enough to stop the fight.

Following the fight, he said, “Whoever’s fighting for the title, I want the winner. Whoever’s got that strap, come see me.”

Anderson’s time with the UFC had ups and downs. He joined the UFC in 2014 after winning TUF season 19, and after six years in the company made inroads to the top but couldn’t secure a title fight.

He put together a four-fight win streak, which included a quick finish of Johnny Walker. Later, he got within reach of Jon Jones for the title. A win over Jan Blachowicz would have seen him get a crack at the belt.

However, things would not go Anderson’s way. Jan Blachowicz, who Anderson already had a win against back in 2015, would get his revenge. The Polish star finished ‘Overtime’ in the first round and would go on to beat Dominick Reyes to become the new UFC light heavyweight champion.

Anderson on the other hand requested his release from the UFC and the promotion in-turn obliged.

Corey Anderson wants the Bellator title

The Bellator light heavyweight division will have its own share of challenges and hungry contenders standing in between Anderson and a title shot against Vadim Nemkov. These include the likes of Lyoto Machida, Phil Davis amongst a few.

“Phil Davis and Vadim Nemkov – the two people fighting for the belt,” Corey stated at the post-fight news conference. “After they fight, I want the winner. There’s no reason why I shouldn’t get it.”

“Ryan Bader is going to heavyweight to defend his belt. If he was staying at 205, I would fight him. But he’s gone. Lyoto (Machida) just lost, so why would I fight a loser? I want somebody that won.”

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Anderson will now be looking at making his run at the Bellator title. The current champion, Nemkov, will have looked impressive, especially with his defeat of Ryan Bader to win the title. What did you make of ‘Overtime’s promotional debut?