The naysayers would argue that Sergio Pettis vs. Patricio Pitbull deserved the main event spot at Bellator 297 — and they may have had a point. But tradition (higher weight classes almost always headline over lower ones) and Vadim Nemkov’s own pedigree as the winningest light heavyweight champion in Bellator MMA history dictated otherwise.
At the Wintrust Arena in Chicago on Friday night, Nemkov looked to fend off arguably the biggest name of his career in Yoel Romero.
At age 46, meanwhile, “The Soldier of God” was almost certainly looking at his last major title shot — despite claiming that he wanted to compete until age 52.
Nemkov opened the action on Friday with a front kick, and would fire another kick high moments later, using his length to keep the powerful, compact Romero at a distance. Romero would eventually answer back with a kick of his own, but was blocking and moving far more than he was attacking; when Romero did get to throw something, Nemkov was all too often already out of range.
The champion’s jab, meanwhile, was finding its mark. A couple of those were following by a spinning kick; a right hand then backed Yoel up. Nemkov was more or less having his way with the challenger through the opening round, out-landing Yoel Romero by a wide margin.
Round two saw Romero continue to react rather than attack, unable to find a way in on Nemkov, who was quicker and busier. Nemkov, meanwhile, fired a right hand down the middle that split the guard of Romero. A frustrated Romero switched stances, but that didn’t pay off at least initially. “The Soldier of God” seemed reluctant to employ his wrestling as well. Through two rounds, the story of the fight was all about Vadim Nemkov.
In the third, Nemkov opened up, landing numerous heavy shots on Romero that appeared to hurt the challenger. Romero swung wild in response, but wasn’t able to land clean. The champ had Romero pinned up against the fence, landing jabs and hooks. Romero answered back, briefly forcing Nemkov to take his foot off the gas. Moments later, Nemkov was back on the attack, while Romero tried to feign injury to lure him in. That didn’t work, but it was Romero landing moments later, knocking Nemkov off-balance! He went down, and Romero got on top, looking to do damage; as Nemkov got back up, Yoel tried to time a knee but had no opening.
That sequence got the crowd going, but Nemkov didn’t appear to be hurt. The champ, however, fired some heavy blows early in round four. Nemkov ripped the body, more than once, and those shots appeared to catch Romero’s attention. Romero’s swing were powerful but wild, rarely coming close to their target. Romero would connect with a low kick, and walk Nemkov down, only for Nemkov to circle out. A right cross for Nemkov would land clean later in the round, Romero barely appeared to notice it. At 46, he certainly still had a chin on him. And at the end of the round, it was a right hand by Romero connecting, keeping things interesting heading into the fifth and final frame.
Round five opened with a simple truth: Yoel Romero needed a finish, with Vadim Nemkov well ahead in the fight. Whether he would be able to find an opening was the question, one that, as time ticked away, became less and less likely. Romero took the fight to Nemkov, cutting off the cage while the Chicago crowd chanted his name. But when the came together in a clinch along the fence, Nemkov was able to hang off the challenger and eat time off the clock. Romero would land a takedown with one minute to go, but the Olympic wrestler was running low on time. Romero ripped the body, but didn’t hand the position to do damage to the head. Nemkov stayed active on bottom, spinning around, and while Romero finished the round on top, the fight had got away from him much earlier.
The win came on the scorecards, with Nemkov extending his record-setting title defense streak in the light heavyweight division to four.
Official Result: Vadim Nemkov def. Yoel Romero by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46)
