James Gallagher returns at Bellator 298, faces Cris Lencioni

After a long layoff, James Gallagher returns to action this summer as a featherweight, facing vet Cris Lencioni at Bellator 298.

A promotional official confirmed the matchup to MMA Fighting after an initial report from Severe MMA. Bellator 298 takes place Aug. 11 at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

The fight is Gallagher’s first in almost two years. “The Strabanimal” most recently faced current interim bantamweight champion Patchy Mix, losing via submission in their 2021 meeting. The setback left his Bellator record at 8-2.

Gallagher was supposed to feature in the Bellator bantamweight grand prix, but an injury forced him to undergo surgery. Mix wound up winning the $1 million tournament with a vicious knockout of Raufeon Stots.

Lencioni returns to the Bellator cage on the strength of a four-fight winning streak. The Pacific Northwest fighter most recently tapped Blake Smith via inverted triangle choke at Bellator 294.

Bellator 298 is headlined by a welterweight fight between Logan Storley and Brennan Ward.