Ryan Bader wishes he’d had the chance to fight Daniel Cormier, Cormier agrees ‘it would have been a fun one’

On Friday night, in the main event of Bellator 207, Bellator light heavyweight champ Ryan Bader advanced to the finals of the promotion’s exciting Heavyweight Grand Prix with a win over Matt Mitrione. While Bader has looked pretty much unstoppable since joining the Bellator roster — in two divisions at that — he still regrets the fact that he never got the chance to fight UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier during his time as a UFC fighter.

“I do think about that,” Bader told the media after Bellator 207 (via MMAjunkie). “We all are, ‘Woulda, coulda, shoulda.’ A big reason for me to come over is I believe I was the best in the world and never got the opportunity to show it [in the UFC]. Over here I did. It’s always there. I’m a competitor, I want to be the best in the world, not, ‘Oh yeah, but there’s another organization.’ Taking nothing away from him. He’s a dominant champion. He’s one of the best to ever do it. Of course I want it. But will that ever happen? No.”

“I think I match up well with him,” Ryan Bader added, discussing a potential matchup with Cormier. “Especially now. If I would have matched up with him five years ago, I don’t think I would do all that well. I think now I beat him. Its just one of those things where it’s too bad it’ll never happen.”

Interestingly, Daniel Cormier seems to agree with Ryan Bader on this one. Shortly after Bellator 207, the UFC double-champ took to Twitter to commend Bader on his success in the Bellator cage and admit it would have been fun to fight him while they both called the same promotion home.

Bader is killing it in bellator! It would have been a fun one ! https://t.co/kmi4VqUj3a

— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) October 13, 2018

“Bader is killing it in bellator,” he said. “It would have been a fun one!”

Who do you think would come out on top if Daniel Cormier and Ryan Bader fought today?

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 10/13/2018.