JAMES GALLAGHER WILL top the bill when American mixed martial arts promotion Bellator makes a return to Ireland early in 2019.
Bellator announced today that Gallagher (7-1) will take on Kansas City native Steven Graham (6-3) in a bantamweight bout at Dublin’s 3Arena on Saturday, 23 February.
A number has yet to be assigned to the card, for which no other fights have so far been announced. However, Gallagher has been confirmed as the star attraction.
The 22-year-old Strabane native, who fights out of Straight Blast Gym in Dublin, will be looking to return to winning ways after suffering the first loss of his professional career in August.
Having seemingly been on the cusp of a bantamweight title shot, Gallagher was knocked out in the first round of his clash with Ricky Bandejas at Bellator 204 in South Dakota.
Steven Graham, an American Top Team product who’s on a five-fight win streak, will be making his Bellator debut when he shares the cage with Gallagher in February.
The event will mark Bellator’s first on Irish soil since November 2017, when Gallagher was due to headline at the 3Arena against Jeremiah Labiano before he was forced to withdraw from the bout due to injury.
Behind the UFC, Bellator is widely regarded as the second-largest show in MMA. According to the promotion, tickets for their forthcoming Dublin event will go on sale from Ticketmaster and the 3Arena box office at 9am on Wednesday.
Subscribe to our new podcast, Heineken Rugby Weekly on The42, here:
