Coker Believes Gallagher Is Close To Receiving A Title Shot

One of the most exciting prospects in all of Bellator, James Gallagher has taken advantage of almost every opportunity in front of him. If all goes according to plan, “The Strabanimal” could receive an opportunity at gold.

Gallagher (10-1) joined Bellator in 2016 following a 3-0 record. He beat Mike Cutting at Bellator 158 via unanimous decision. Since then, the has slowly moved his way up the ladder in the bantamweight division. On a three-fight win streak, could we see Gallagher in the bantamweight title picture? Bellator’s Scott Coker spoke to Sky Sports about the 23-year-old from Ireland. The Bellator Bantamweight Title is up for grabs, and this time next year Gallagher could be ready to take it.

“Right now, because of the way our title works, Darrion Caldwell lost to [Kyoji] Horiguchi, Horiguchi blew his knee out and that title is vacant right now,” Coker stated. “James is definitely in that mix if he wins another fight or two. I’d say one more fight and he’s right in that picture.”

Gallagher lost to Ricky Bandejas at Bellator 204, the lone loss of his career. Since then, he has taken over the competition. His last bout was a 35-second submission-win over Roman Salazar at Bellator 227. He has been scheduled to face rival Cal Ellenor for quite some time now, but the Bellator London card on May 16 was postponed due to the coronavirus.

The Bellator bantamweight scene is extremely interesting. Darrion Caldwell lost to Kyoji Horiguchi twice, losing the title at Bellator 222. He has since moved on to featherweight, competing in the Featherweight Grand Prix and already in the semifinals. Could Gallagher have joined him on that journey?

“James was asked if he wanted to come to the featherweight tournament, but he really felt he was a 135-pounder, and he wanted to stay there,” Coker went on to say. “I really don’t blame him. If you’re fighting at 135, a jump to 145 – that’s a lot of weight.”

Horiguchi’s injury has left the title open for the taking. Bandejas (13-3) is on a two-fight win streak, Ellenor (8-2) is on a one-fight win streak and is 3-1 in his last four fights, and Patrick Mix (13-0) is 3-0 since joining Bellator. If Gallagher can move past Ellenor and the others, the possibilities are endless.

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