Ryan Bader vs. Lyoto Machida 2: Bellator 256 date, fight time, TV channel and live stream

It has been almost a decade since Ryan Bader and Lyoto Machida faced off in the cage. Now, they will finally run it back.

On August 4, 2012, Machida defeated Bader via knockout in round two of their UFC battle on FOX television. Now, both men are under the Bellator umbrella and Bader, the promotion's current heavyweight champion and a former 'champ-champ', will view revenge over the Brazilian as the perfect way to begin his path back to the light-heavy belt he lost last summer to Vadim Nemkov.

Machida, meanwhile, is now 42 years of age and must repeat his 2012 feat over the American if he is to embark on an Indian summer in the light-heavy Grand Prix tournament. With defeats in his last two outings against Gegard Mousasi and Phil Davis, this could be his last crack at the big time.

Here's how you can watch Bellator 256: Bader vs. Machida 2.

When is Bader vs. Machida 2? Date, start time

• Date: Friday, Apr. 9
• Time: 11 p.m. BST/6 p.m. ET

The latest Bellator event takes place today (Friday Apr. 9). The festivities kick off at 6 p.m. local time on the American East coast, which is 11 p.m. for British fans and midnight Saturday Apr. 10 in Europe.

The main card is then expected to commence from 9 p.m. Eastern, which is 2 a.m. in the UK and 3 a.m. Central European Time.

As ever, the main event cagewalks will depend on how long the rest of the card runs.

What channel/stream is Bader vs. Machida 2?

• U.S.: Showtime
• U.K.: BBC iPlayer

Showtime will air the Bellator 256 main card in the United States, while the BBC have signed a deal with Bellator to stream their 2021 events via their iPlayer service on televisions and devices.

Where is the Bader vs. Machida 2 fight?

The card takes place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The venue has staged a large number of combat sports events during the COVID-19 pandemic and is in full compliance with the latest health and safety protocol.

Ryan Bader record and bio

• Nationality: American
• Date of birth: June 7, 1983
• Height: 6'2"
• Reach: 74"
• Total fights: 34
• Record: 27-6 (12 by KO, 3 by submission, 1 no-contest)

Lyoto Machida record and bio

• Nationality: Brazilian
• Date of birth: May 30, 1978
• Height: 6'1"
• Reach: 74"
• Total fights: 36
• Record: 26-10 (11 by KO, 2 by submission)

Bader vs. Machida 2 card in full

Main Card

• Ryan Bader vs. Lyoto Machida, Light Heavyweight Grand Prix quarter-final
• Liz Carmouche vs. Vanessa Porto; flyweight
• Adam Borics vs. Jeremy Kennedy; featherweight
• Cat Zingano vs. Olivia Parker; featherweight
• Goiti Yamauchi vs. Dan Moret; lightweight

Preliminary Card

• Cody Law vs. Nathan Ghareeb; featherweight
• Talita Nogueira vs. Jessica Borga; featherweight
• Diana Avsaragova vs. Tara Graff; flyweight
• Cass Bell vs. Jornel Lugo: bantamweight
• Nainoa Dung vs. Izzy William; lightweight
• Dalton Rosta vs. Tony Johnson; middleweight
• Jaylon Bates vs. Jeffrey Glossner; bantamweight
• John Douma vs. Will Smith; bantamweight