With one fight left to go on his current contract, Light-Heavyweight Ryan Bader (21-5) takes on Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (22-7) in the main event of UFC Fight Night 100 which takes in Sao Paulo, Brazil this Saturday. Following the bout Bader will become a free agent as he seeks to gamble on the outcome of this fight for leverage in securing a better deal.
The 33-year-old, who debuted ad indeed won “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 explained his decision to Fox Sports stating that although he has no plans of moving elsewhere, he is willing to roll the dices on this fight in a bid to strengthening his position around the negotiating table.
“For me it was just one of those things where it was kind of like why not? Why not fight this last fight on my deal and see where we go from there.” said Bader.
“That doesn’t necessarily mean I’m leaving or anything like that. It’s just one of those things, it comes down to why not? We’ve got this fight and I’m going to fight it out and see where we go from here.”
“I have no plans on going elsewhere or really I have no plans as of right now. We’re going to see where we go from there.”
“Darth” Bader will not be the first to choose this option in what is becoming an upward trend in the sport and especially in the UFC with competitors such as Bellator offering higher value contracts to tempt disenchanted fighters like Rory MacDonald and Benson Henderson.
Also fighters like Lorenz Larkin have put themselves in similar situations to Bader with it paying off after emphatic victories at the end of their contracts ensuring UFC would up their offer after such performances.
Already holding a unanimous decision victory over “Lil Nog” in 2010 at UFC 119, Bader will look to repeat the feat to not only recover his standing near the top of the rankings, but also to earn the contract he feels he deserves coming into the twilight of his career.
