ROSEMONT, Ill. – Former featherweight champion Pat Curran didn’t make things easy on A.J. McKee on Saturday night, but McKee still found a way to be dominant.
McKee (14-0 MMA, 14-0 BMMA) stayed perfect with a unanimous decision win over Curran (23-8 MMA, 13-5 BMMA), who was fighting for the first time since October 2017, and was in front of his home fans. McKee won with a pair of 30-27 scores and a 30-26 from the judges.
The featherweight fight was part of the main card of Bellator 221 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., near Chicago. The main card streamed on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.
After the two felt each other out the first couple minutes, McKee got the former champ to the canvas two minutes into the round. Curran tried to work his way to the fence to wall walk, but McKee kept him stifled. Curran eventually worked his way back to his feet, though, without taking too much damage. With 30 seconds left in the round, McKee landed a shot that nearly took Curran off his feet, but Curran managed to get out of danger.
The second round was light on action with both fighters seeming to move ahead with a bit of caution till Curran was able to take McKee down with 90 seconds left in the round. Curran tried to land punches from McKee’s guard on top while McKee played defense and tried to counter with elbows from his back.
The third round was a cautious one again for both fighters, but McKee did enough to keep Curran’s offense stifled, then earned a takedown with 30 seconds left in the frame to seal the deal.
Up-to-the-minute Bellator 221 results include:
- A.J. McKee def. Pat Curran via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jake Hager def. T.J. Jones via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 1, 2:36
- Tywan Claxton def. James Bennett via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 2:09/li>
- Rob Fenicle def. Bryan Bautista via submission (heel hook) – Round 1, 1:42
- Khuukhenkhuu Amartuvshin def. Adam Ward via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Christian Rodriguez def. Jose Leon via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 4:35
- Robert Morrow def. James Bochnovic via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:18
- Chris Gonzalez def. Charlie Radtke via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Cris Lencioni def. Adil Benjilany via submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 4:55
- Jason Belyew vs. Dave Latoria ruled no-contest (unintentional low blow) – Round 1
- Jesse Bazzi def. Joey Diehl via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Josh Streacker def. Scott Writz via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 3:33
For complete coverage of Bellator 221, check out the MMA Events section of the site.
