Ryan Bader, despite that loss to Jon Jones at UFC 126, is still one of the fastest rising prospects in mixed martial arts. He has compiled a 12-1 record, but he doesn’t have that one signature win to put him over the top.
His opponent at UFC 132 is Tito Ortiz, a fighter who is not what he once was but still an attention grabber whenever he steps in the octagon. He hasn’t won since 2006, a span that covers five fights.
The easiest way to become a household name in any sport is to knock off a big name opponent. Cain Velasquez did it when he beat Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones did it when he beat Shogun Rua, Randy Couture did it when he beat Chuck Liddell.
The difference here is that all those guys were fighting guys who were in their prime, but it doesn’t really matter because the casual fan knows the name Tito Ortiz.
The first fight following a loss is always the most important, because it gives you an idea of how the fighter will react to his first real adversity.
From Yahoo.com:
“It sucks,” was Bader’s reaction to the Jones loss. “The week after, I was really mad at myself. If I fought to my potential and went down swinging, it would be one thing. I had a great training camp but I didn’t fight to my potential.
“Something was missing. I don’t know what it was. I was thinking about it for a week, then two weeks after and I couldn’t get rid of what was bothering me. I’ve had to use it for motivation for this fight.”
Bader has a great future in this sport, but this fight will be a test of just how much of a star he will be. If he wins in dominating fashion, the sky is the limit. If it’s a boring, uninspired performance, his star will dim a little bit more.
This isn’t the most glamorous fight in the world thanks to Ortiz’s fall from grace, but this is the most important fight in the young career of Bader. He has the skills to be one of the two best 205-pound fighters in the world, along with Jones, in a few years.
But he has to prove that the adversity he faced in his last fight is not something that will linger with him for a long time.
Given Bader’s terrific wrestling background and always improving stand up game, I would be willing to bet that he puts on a great performance and has his hand raised in victory at UFC 132.
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