Vadim
Nemkov lets others talk the talk while he walks the walk.
Having emerged as the top 205-pound fighter in the sport in the
eyes of many, the 30-year-old Russian will put his
Bellator
MMA light heavyweight championship on the line against onetime
Olympic silver medalist
Yoel Romero
in the
Bellator 290 co-main event on Feb. 4 at the Kia Forum in
Inglewood, California. Nemkov enters the cage unbeaten (10-0-1)
across his past 11 appearances. He has delivered 12 of his 15
career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission.
As Nemkov prepares for his forthcoming showdown with the
frighteningly gifted Romero, a look at five of the many moments
that have come to define him:
1. Mortal Combat
Jiri
Prochazka emerged as the last man standing in the
Rizin Fighting Federation heavyweight grand prix semifinals
when he was awarded a technical knockout over Nemkov in between the
first and second rounds of their “Iza no Mai” confrontation on Dec.
31, 2015 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. The two men took
turns leading the dance, as Prochazka flexed his superiority in the
standup exchanges and Nemkov answered with takedowns, positional
control, ground-and-pound and repeated submission attempts.
However, the future Bellator champion paid a steep price for the
gains he made. Nemkov suffered significant damage to his left eye
and exhausted himself to such an extent that it became clear he had
crossed the point of no return. When the bell sounded to end Round
1, the
Fedor
Emelianenko protege remained on the canvas, indicated he could
not reach his corner under his own power and conceded defeat.
2. An Instructive and Destructive Introduction
When Nemkov made his promotional debut at Bellator 182, he did so
in stealth mode. There, the under-the-radar Russian export put away
Philipe
Lins with first-round punches as part of a deep undercard on
Aug. 25, 2017 at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, New
York. Lins—who went on to win a
Professional Fighters League tournament a little more than a
year later—bowed out 3:03 into Round 1. Nemkov short-circuited the
Brazilian with steady output, forcing him away from the center of
the cage and onto the back foot. Leg kicks, jabs and one-twos all
conspired against Lins, until his counterpart found the opening for
which he was hunting. Nemkov floored the Nova Uniao product with a
devastating right cross, hovered over him and pounded away with
standing-to-ground punches to prompt the stoppage. Suddenly,
Bellator’s light heavyweight division had a real problem on its
hands.
3. One Last Hurdle
Nemkov blew away
Ryan Bader
with a head kick and follow-up punches in the second round of their
Bellator 244 headliner on Aug. 21, 2020 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in
Uncasville, Connecticut, where he etched his name in the
promotion’s history books as the seventh man to claim its light
heavyweight championship. Bader succumbed to blows 3:02 into Round
2, suffering his first defeat in almost four years. Nemkov
surrendered a takedown in the first round but was otherwise
responsible for virtually all of the meaningful offense. He tagged
Bader with a straight right hand in Round 2, reset after an
accidental eye poke paused the action and decked the two-time NCAA
All-American wrestler with a perfectly placed high kick. Nemkov
pursued the fallen champion to the floor, showered him with punches
and allowed him to stand before one final left hand forced referee
Kerry Hatley to act on “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 winner’s
behalf.
4. Wonderfully Complete
The polished and still-improving Russian successfully defended his
undisputed 205-pound title and advanced to the semifinals of the
Bellator MMA light heavyweight grand prix with a unanimous decision
over
Phil
Davis in the Bellator 257 main event on April 16, 2021 at the
Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. All three judges
struck 48-47 scorecards for Nemkov, who moved to 2-0 in his
head-to-head series with the four-time NCAA All-American wrestler.
Davis struggled to get in gear, and the slow start did him no
favors. Nemkov—who managed to eke out a split decision over the
Alliance MMA mainstay in their first encounter in November
2018—built a commanding lead on the strength of a crisp jab,
well-timed punching combinations and occasional kicks to the lower
leg. Even so, “Mr. Wonderful” had his moments. Davis cut the
champion near his left eye with an overhand right in the second
round and enjoyed some success in the clinch. However, he failed to
give Nemkov true pause and instead watched his opportunity to
reclaim the light heavyweight crown slip through his fingers.
5. Working ‘Overtime’
Nemkov tightened his stranglehold on the 205-pound championship and
took a unanimous decision from
Corey
Anderson, as their Bellator MMA light heavyweight grand prix
final headlined Bellator 288 on Nov. 18, 2022 at Wintrust Arena in
Chicago. Scores were 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46, though the margins
felt much wider. Nemkov leaned on a crisp jab, sharp counters and
stingy takedown defense across the 25-minute affair. He sat down
Anderson with a glancing wheel kick at the end of the first round,
opened a cut near his right eye with persistent jabs in the third
and later zeroed in on his base with crushing leg kicks. “The
Ultimate Fighter” Season 19 winner dug deep into his bag of tricks
but went nowhere, as his bids for takedowns grew increasingly
desperate and his attempts to lure Nemkov into the clinch proved
fruitless. By the time the fifth round concluded, it had become
clear the Bellator light heavyweight division was effectively on
lockdown.