Ryan Bader walked into the UFC with big hopes of his own to go with the expectations of others who saw a diamond in the rough. The former collegiate wrestling All-American has steadily improved and risen up the UFC light-heavyweight depth chart, first winning The Ultimate Fighter’s season eight, before embarking on an octagon career that’s seen him go 5-0, with big wins over Keith Jardine, and most recently, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.
That victory put him on a collision course with another rising star, Jon Jones. The two will meet at UFC 126 in February 2011, and because the two are likely to be in the championship picture for years to come, it seems to be the type of matchup that at best might ignite a longtime rivalry, and at worst will launch one of the two squarely towards top contender status.