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Ryan Bader Dominates Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson at Submission Underground 19

Published 12/21/2020, 5:30 AM EST

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Anthony Johnson was initially set to take on Curtis Blaydes and then Fabricio Werdum at Submission Underground. However, both men pulled out of the fight. Former Bellator champion Ryan Bader stepped in on 72 hours’ notice to take on ‘Rumble’ at the event.

It did not seem as if Bader took the fight on 72 hours’ notice as he dominated ‘Rumble’ throughout the course of the bout. Towards the end of regulation time, it looked as though Bader was close to pulling off an arm-bar against the former UFC fighter. However, Anthony managed to slip out of it. 

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The bout went all the way to third overtime for a winner to be decided. Ryan Bader defeated Anthony “Rumble” Johnson via the quickest escape time in overtime. Since parting ways with the UFC, Johnson has featured often on the grappling circuit. He has previously faced names such as Muhammed Lawal, Hector Lombard among others.

Read: Did Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson make the wrong decision by joining Bellator?

Anthony Johnson vs Ryan Bader at SUG 19; a preview of a potential matchup at Bellator?

‘Rumble’ retired from the UFC in 2017 following an unsuccessful attempt at winning the title against Daniel Cormier. Johnson was one of the best at 205-pounds in the promotion and therefore when he announced he was returning to the sport, many believed he was headed back to the UFC. 

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However, Johnson shocked the world when he announced he would be joining Bellator MMA. He will join the recent acquisition, Yoel Romero. 

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Bader was the light heavyweight champion of the world at Bellator. However, in his last outing, he lost the belt to Vadim Nemkov via TKO in August. 

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The likes of Yoel Romero and Anthony Johnson spice up an already stacked Bellator light heavyweight division. The match at Submission Underground between ‘Rumble’ and ‘Darth’ might be a preview of what is to come if the two men should face each other in an octagon.

Given the fact that they are in the same promotion, this is very likely. Would you like to see Anthony Johnson fight Yoel Romero at Bellator in 2021?

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Kevin Binoy

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Kevin Binoy is an MMA author at EssentiallySports. He earned a Bachelor's degree from Fergusson College and has been covering sports professionally for over two years. Besides working with the MMA writing team, Kevin is a core member of the organization's web stories team and is responsible for delivering engaging MMA web stories.
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