They call him the Strabanimal because he’s from Strabane, and he’s a fucking animal.
19-year-old SBG prospect James Gallagher had the biggest fight of his career against Mike Cutting at Bellator 158’s main card on Saturday night, and boy did he deliver.
There was a lot of pressure on the fighters’ shoulders heading into this fight with some bad blood between him and his opponent, the pressure that comes with being undefeated and the fact that he was fighting on the main card of one of the biggest MMA promotions in the world.
Shit almost got real at the #Bellator158 weigh-ins https://t.co/4P45LA3Cx3
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) July 16, 2016
However, Gallagher rose to the occasion and kept his pristine professional record intact, extending it to four-straight victories by beating his English rival via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
His coach, John Kavanagh, who has watched him submit fully grown men in jiu-jitsu tournaments since he was 13, was very proud of his fighter after the fight.
I was 19 when I saw MMA for 1st time. 20yrs later my student makes his successful @BellatorMMA debut going 4-0. Where did the time go?? 😅
— Coach JK (@John_Kavanagh) July 16, 2016
