Bellator Champ Vadim Nemkov Considering Move to Heavyweight After Latest Win

Vadim Nemkov added another high-profle name to his resume, as he took a lopsided unanimous verdict against former UFC middleweitht title challenger Yoel Romero in the Bellator 297 main event on Friday night.

“I’m very happy about this win,” Nemkov said at the Bellator 297 post-fight press conference. “It was very important to me. He’s a great fighter. He’s a legend. He’s an Olympian, so to win over somebody like him who was fighting with a lot of great fighters, top fighters, it means a lot to me.”

Romero absorbed copious amounts of punishment in the bout, but his durability carried him through to the final horn. “The Soldier of God” had his best moment in Round 5, when he was able to take Nemkov down, but other than that the most entertaining portions of the contest occurred when the Cuban feigned being stunned by stumbling around the cage.

Nemkov came away impressed by his opponent’s toughness.

“I was surprised about his head. It’s really strong. There was a lot of great shots that I landed that I felt through the glove,” Nemkov said. “It was kind of weird that he didn’t get injured or anything. At the end of the second round I thought I got him, but then I understood he was acting.”

Nemkov is unbeaten in his last 12 professional outings, and he now owns notable wins over the likes of Romero, Corey Anderson, Phil Davis (twice), Ryan Bader, Rafael Carvalho, Liam McGeary and Philipe Lins. As it currently stands, there isn’t a clear No. 1 contender for Nemkov at 205 pounds. That has him pondering a move up to heavyweight.

“I am one of the best light heavyweights in the world,” Nemkov said. “I don’t think there’s any challenge for me in the light heavyweight division, so I may try myself in heavyweight division now, because there’s no one else to fight there.”