Cheick Kongo News
Cheick Kongo opens up on controversial Ryan Bader fight
Cole Shelton - September 16, 2019
Cheick Kongo was fighting for the heavyweight title against Ryan Bader in the main event of Bellator 226. It was a chance for the 44-year-old Frenchman to win a major MMA title, something that has eluded him thus far in his career. Unfortunately for Kongo and his team, things didn’t go as planned. Instead, the fight was ruled a no-contest after an accidental eye poke from Bader. The champion has since gone on social media posting videos saying there was no eye poke. Kongo, however, says he was poked in the eye, and the nose.
Bellator 226 salaries: Victorious Emmanuel Sanchez earns top payday
Tom Taylor - September 10, 2019
On Saturday night, Bellator MMA returned to our screens with Bellator 226. This stacked card was topped by a heavyweight title fight between reigning champ Ryan Bader and Bellator staple Cheick Kongo. Elsewhere on the card, we witnessed four of the quarterfinal bout for Bellator’s 16-man Featherweight World Grand Prix, in addition to a number of other exciting matchups.
Ryan Bader believes Cheick Kongo used the eye poke to get out of the fight
Cole Shelton - September 8, 2019
Ryan Bader was looking for the first title defense of his heavyweight belt when he took on Cheick Kongo in the main event of Bellator 226. Yet, he did not get to defend his title but did not lose it either. Instead, the fight was ruled a no-contest due to an accidental eye poke from Bader. Now, after the fight, ‘Darth’ believes Kongo used the eye poke as the reason to get out of the scrap.
PHOTO | See Cheick Kongo's eye after No Contest ending at Bellator 226
Adam D Martin - September 8, 2019
Cheick Kongo’s teammate Quinton “Rampage” Jackson posted a picture of his teammate’s injured eye following a disappointing conclusion to Bellator 226. Kongo’s fight against Ryan Bader ended with a No Contest in the first round after Bader was deemed to have accidentally poked his opponent in the eye, which led to the doctor stopping the fight. Some fans and media were critical of the end to the fight, believing it may have been a punch and not a poke that injured Kongo’s eye.
Bellator 226 Results: Ryan Bader vs. Cheick Kongo ends in a no-contest
Chris Taylor - September 7, 2019
Ryan Bader puts his heavyweight title on the line against Cheick Kongo in the headliner of tonight’s Bellator 226 event in San Jose. Bader (27-5 MMA) captured the promotions vacant heavyweight title this past January at Bellator 214, defeating MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko by first round knockout.
Cheick Kongo shoves Ryan Bader at Bellator 226 weigh-ins (VIDEO)
Mike Heck - September 6, 2019
Cheick Kongo has won eight fights in a row heading into his heavyweight title opportunity against Ryan Bader at Bellator 226, yet has stayed relatively under the radar. That certainly changed as the two headliners for Saturday night’s event went face-to-face for the final time. At the Bellator 226 ceremonial weigh-ins on Friday evening in San Jose, the champion and challenger stared each other down on stage and it looked pretty intense. Moments later, Kongo gave Bader a two-handed shove to the chest as shown in the video below, courtesy of Bellator MMA’s Twitter page.
Bellator 226 | Pro fighters make their picks for Ryan Bader vs. Cheick Kongo title fight
Cole Shelton - September 6, 2019
In the main event of Bellator 226, Ryan Bader looks to defend his heavyweight title for the first time when he takes on Cheick Kongo. The champion is currently a -350 favorite at 5Dimes while the challenger is a +250 underdog. Ahead of this Bellator 226 fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. This time around, the pros are unanimous as they all believe Ryan Bader will defend his belt against the 44-year-old Frenchman.
Cheick Kongo: win over Bader makes me 'the best heavyweight in the world'
Cole Shelton - September 2, 2019
Cheick Kongo will soon have a chance to become a heavyweight champion in a major promotion for the first time in his career. The 44-year-old Frenchman will take on Ryan Bader in the main event of Bellator 226 this Saturday. The training camp preparing for Bader has not been an easy one for Kongo. He knows the Bellator champion is an elite wrestler so in preparation he brought in world class, Olympic-level wrestlers to help him for this camp.
Cheick Kongo and Ryan Bader get heated over potential title fight
Tom Taylor - February 17, 2019
When Cheick Kongo handed former Bellator champ Vitaly Minakov his first loss on the main card of Bellator 216 on Saturday night, he earned himself a shot a reigning Bellator heavyweight champ Ryan Bader. He did not hesitate to call Bader out at the Bellator 216 post-fight press conference.
Cheick Kongo sends ominous threat to Bellator heavyweight champ Ryan Bader
Tom Taylor - February 17, 2019
Cheick Kongo is now the number-one contender in the Bellator heavyweight division. The hulking Frenchman earned that honor with a workmanlike defeat of the formerly undefeated former champ Vitaly Minakov at Bellator 216 on Saturday night. Cheick Kongo has been chasing a Bellator heavyweight title shot for years, and can now look forward to a fight with reigning champion Ryan Bader. That said, he believes it would be more straightforward for Bader to just give him the belt — and he promises trouble if the champ doesn’t oblige.
Bellator 216 Results: Cheick Kongo defeats Vitaly Minakov
Chris Taylor - February 16, 2019
A heavyweight rematch between Cheick Kongo and Vitaly Minakov took place on the main card of tonight’s Bellator 216 event in Uncasville, Connecticut. Minakov had previously defeated Kongo via unanimous decision back in 2014.
Bellator 208 Results: Cheick Kongo TKO's Timothy Johnson (VIDEO)
Chris Taylor - October 13, 2018
A heavyweight bout between former UFC fighters Cheick Kongo and Timothy Johnson took place during tonight’s Bellator 208 main card. Kongo (28-10-2 MMA) enters tonight’s contest on a six-fight win streak, his latest being a first-round knockout victory over Javy Ayala at Bellator 199.
