20 of the best Bellator fighters of all time
By Chad Porto
10. Andrey Koreshkov
The 33-year-old has been with Bellator for over a decade, and in his time he's fought 20 times - the most times in Bellator history. And in those 20 fights, he's 16-4, with those four losses coming to just three men; Lorenz Larkin, Ben Askren, and Douglas Lima (twice). Along the way, he won the Season 7 and 10 middleweight tournaments, while also securing the Bellator middleweight title. He's been able to avenge his loss to Larkin in July of 2023, while also knocking off MMA legend Benson Henderson.
9. Gegard Mousasi
One of the last remaining PRIDE FC fighters going, Gegard Mousasi continues to be a top-tier fighter. While he's slowed down a bit as he pushes 40, he's still able to claim that he's one of the best fighters Bellator has ever had. He's been the middleweight champion of the promotion twice, defending the title three times overall, and defeating names like Douglas Lima, Lyoto Machida, Rory MacDonald, Alexander Shlemenko, and Rafael Carvalho.
8. Vadim Nemkov
Arguably the best light-heavyweight that Bellator has ever had, Vadim Nemkov has plowed through the who's who of fighters. He's had the most successful title defenses in promotion history (5) and has beaten names like Liam McGeary, Phil Davis, Corey Anderson, Yoel Romero, and Ryan Bader. He's been unstoppable in Bellator, and his legacy is more than secured.
7. Will Brooks
The legacy of Will Brooks centers around one man; Michael Chandler. He's never had the biggest wins; names like Saad Awad are the most recognizable names he's beaten for the most part during his stay in Bellator. That is, save for Chandler. Brooks is one of the few fighters in the world who can say he has two back-to-back wins over Chandler; a rare feat. Those wins netted him the lightweight championship, and bragging rights for life over Chandler. And when you beat arguably the best fighter in company history twice, in a row, you're going to rank pretty high.
6. Eddie Alvarez
You're going to be seeing a pattern from here on out. A lot of guys who made their name against Michael Chandler will have a bit of a higher place and that's not by accident. These were the feuds and fights that built Bellator. But for Eddie Alvarez, before there was Chandler, there was him. Debuting at Bellator 1, Alvarez would go on to win the Bellator lightweight title on two occasions and defeated names like Katunori Kikuno, Roger Huerta, Shinya Aoki, Patricky Pitbull and the aforementioned Chandler.