After nearly two years out of action, Irish star James Gallagher returned to the cage at Bellator 298 on Friday, in a fight that doubled as his return to the featherweight division.
Opposite Gallagher, welcoming the “StrabAnimal” back to the fold, was James Gonzalez, though it’s impossible to look at the match-up and not think of Cris Lencioni. “Sunshine” was Gallagher’s originally scheduled opponent, but went into cardiac arrest during a medical emergency earlier this summer.
Luckily, Lencioni survived, though he has a long road to recovery ahead. The show must go on, however, and it was Gonzalez again stepping up on short notice, as he had against Aaron Pico not too long ago.
Gallagher had to contend with eating a shot from James Gonzalez early — but he took it, and landed a takedown shortly after. On top, the Irish fighter went to work, settling into guard, where he began creating space to land elbows. Gonzalez, however, would go hunting for a leg lock from bottom, putting Gallagher on the defensive.
Eventually pulling free, Gallagher would get on top once again. From there, he’d have to contend with Gonzalez hunting a leg again, but Gallagher himself would attempt a heel hook while standing. In the end, he’d finish on top landing some very active ground n’ pound.
Round two saw Gonzalez fire a spinning kick to the body early. A feigned jumping attack was followed by a level change for Gallagher, who dragged his opponent down. Gallagher looked the take the back, getting one hook in. Gonzalez ripped the body from bottom, but that also meant accepting the position.
Gonzalez would close his guard, and later transition to an arm-bar attempt. He didn’t have it, and Gallagher moved from north-south to side control, then wound up in Gonzalez’s half-guard. As active as James Gonzalez was off his back, he just wasn’t winning the round from there.
The third and final round saw James Gonzalez turn up the heat. He came out swinging, and backed Gallagher up. But Gallagher landed a key takedown, getting on top and going to work.
This time, the position didn’t last long. Gonzalez scrambled to the fence, where Gallagher threatened to take the back. Gonzalez had other plans. He landed a throw and got on top, coming close to making it to mount. Gallagher was active enough on the bottom to avoid any serious damage, but the round clearly belonged to Gonzalez! Which took things to the judges — two of whom scored the fight for Gallagher.
“Winners win, motherf*ckers. Winners f*cking win,” Gallagher said after the fight, as the crowd rained down a chorus of boos. “That was a sloppy performance. I want a quick turnaround,” he added. “My mindset’s different. That was just a warm-up.”
Official Result: James Gallagher def. James Gonzalez by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
