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While the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday runs a low-profile card in Denmark, Bellator MMA has the opportunity to grab the fighting world’s attention with a pair of events in Dublin and Los Angeles this weekend. With a combination of established names and rising stars, Bellator has plenty to offer with its doubleheader. In a year where Bellator has continued to stockpile recognizable talent but failed to generate as much excitement inside the cage, the promotion can only hope that Bellator 227 and Bellator 228 help to build interest in the company’s final quarter slate.
The first of its two events may be anchored by Benson Henderson and Myles Jury, but the most important Dublin fights for Bellator are the ones featuring two of its brightest European stars. James Gallagher returns to his native Ireland to face off against UFC veteran Roman Salazar, while Michael Page looks to rebound from his first MMA loss against a soft-touch opponent in Richard Kiely.
It remains difficult to know what exactly Bellator has in Gallagher. He is still only 22 years old, and he has an obvious charisma about him. He has a flair for building up his fights and has all the makings of a major drawing card for the European market -- if he can fight at a high enough level. He is 6-1 thus far in Bellator, certainly an impressive enough record given his young age. Still, watching his fights, it’s easy to wonder if he’s ever going to fight at an elite level. Gallagher needs to keep winning, and he can demonstrate again his ability to connect with a crowd while headlining at the 3Arena in Dublin.
Page is in a similar position to Gallagher. He has all the tools you could want: a flashy striking style, top-flight athleticism and a dynamic personality. However, he is coming off a brutal knockout loss to Douglas Lima, and the big question involves how he will respond to that setback. Some fighters crumble when the myth of their invincibility is shattered; others come back even stronger. Bellator is setting up MVP for a nice rebound based on the choice of opponent, and if he doesn’t look good, it will be a bad sign.
The aforementioned Henderson-Jury fight is also an important one for both former UFC stars. After a rough start in Bellator, Henderson has finally gained some momentum with three consecutive wins. A victory over Jury could put him position for a title shot and the opportunity to regain some of the stature he held in the sport at the time of his signing with Bellator. The contest is arguably even more pivotal for Jury, who is competing in Bellator for the first time. Five years ago, undefeated at 15-0 and just 25 years old, Jury looked like a potential future lightweight champion. Instead, he has been done in by injuries and inconsistency, going only 2-4 since. Fighting for a new promotion gives Jury the opportunity to change his story, as a win against Henderson would go a long way towards reframing how he is perceived. Of course, a loss could mean low-profile undercard bouts for the foreseeable future.
Even more important for Bellator is the second of its two events. Bellator President Scott Coker when he took over ditched the promotion’s signature tournament format, a format that helped to produce most of its homegrown stars. Perhaps recognizing that reality, Bellator has been all about tournaments of late. Following heavyweight and welterweight grand prix tournaments, Bellator is now running a featherweight grand prix and the second half of the first-round bracket runs at Bellator 228.
The opening to the featherweight tournament in San Jose, California, wasn’t a blow-away event by any means, but the second set of fights was always the more intriguing collection. It features featherweight champion Patricio Freire defending his title against Juan Archuleta, easily the most compelling first-round matchup. Freire is one of the most underappreciated talents in the sport, having fought at a top level for a decade now. Archuleta, on the other hand, has a sparkling 23-1 record and was spectacular in his last victory over Eduardo Dantas. It’s a great title fight.
While Bellator 228 also features former bantamweight champion Darrion Caldwell looking to recover from a pair of stunning losses to Kyoji Horiguchi, the rising fighter to watch in the tournament is A.J. McKee. He has all the tools to be one of the best fighters in the sport, and this tournament could be his coming-out party in the way that the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix of 2011-12 was the coming-out party for Daniel Cormier. McKee takes on Georgi Karakhanyan, no joke as an opponent. Adding to the drama is that McKee will fight for the first time on a card with his father and mentor Antonio McKee. It will surely be an emotional moment for father and son, as the elder McKee last fought before his son made his MMA debut.
In addition to the featherweight tournament, the biggest star fighting for the organization also competes at Bellator 228, where Lyoto Machida looks to improve his Bellator record to 3-0 against Gegard Mousasi. Machida bested Mousasi once before in 2014, but “The Dragon” is now 41. Mousasi is 34 and looks as good as he ever has despite losing his Bellator middleweight title last time out via majority decision to Rafael Lovato Jr. The bout may not have the same future repercussions as some of the others, but it remains a fight between two hall of fame-level fighters. It’s one of many offerings Bellator hopes will entice fans to tune in this weekend.
Todd Martin has written about mixed martial arts since 2002 for a variety of outlets, including CBSSports.com, SI.com, ESPN.com, the Los Angeles Times, MMApayout.com, Fight Magazine and Fighting Spirit Magazine. He has appeared on a number of radio stations, including ESPN affiliates in New York and Washington, D.C., and HDNet’s “Inside MMA” television show. In addition to his work at Sherdog.com, he does a weekly podcast with Wade Keller at PWTorch.com and blogs regularly at LaTimes.com. Todd received his BA from Vassar College in 2003 and JD from UCLA School of Law in 2007 and is a licensed attorney. He has covered UFC, Pride, Bellator, Affliction, IFL, WFA, Strikeforce, WEC and K-1 live events. He believes deeply in the power of MMA to heal the world and bring happiness to all of its people.