Former two-division Bellator title challenger Benson Henderson proved to be too much to handle in the main event of Bellator 285, leaving the Irish crowd stunned at the one-sided display.
Peter Queally, who had the entire arena rocking with his walkout to “Zombie” by The Cranberries, soaked in the scene moments before the main event got underway against Henderson (30-11 MMA, 7-6 BMMA). Unfortunately for the hometown fighter, the pre-fight celebration would be the only high point, as he ended up on the wrong side of a dominant unanimous decision.
Bellator 285 took place Friday at 3Arena in Dublin. The main card aired on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Queally (13-7-1 MMA, 2-3 BMMA) didn’t waste time applying pressure to Henderson, as he quickly darted across the cage and began putting punching combinations together. Henderson remained calm and circled away as the crowd chanted for Queally. Henderson went to his grappling game, pinning Queally down to one knee against the fence while short strikes. This would be scene repeated over the next 20 minutes.
The second round paused nearly as soon as it started after a hard kick from Henderson went south. Queally took his time to recover, and was docked a point by the referee. When the action resumed, Henderson went back to the wrestling game, racking up control time against the fence while looking for short strikes, but Queally kept things standing.
After a few exchanges on the feet to begin the third, Henderson completed a takedown and unloaded a series of elbows after Queally scrambled to get his back to the fence. Queally got back to his feet, but Henderson continued to unload strikes until changing levels.
Henderson kept the pressure high to begin the fourth round, hurting Queally with strikes early. Queally covered against the fence as Henderson unloaded knees to the thigh and short elbows. It was another five minutes of one-sided action.
Unleashing a jumping switch kick and punching combinations, Henderson’s confidence was incredibly high to start the final round. Before Queally could mount any significant offense, Henderson went back to the wrestling to seal the fight.
With the crowd silenced, the judges turned in identical scores of 49-45 in Henderson’s favor, who used his post-fight interview time to make his case for another shot at the Bellator title.
With the win, Henderson keeps the momentum going following a split decision win over Islam Mamdeov in January. The former UFC lightweight champ walks away with the seventh win of his Bellator run, which includes wins over Myles Jury, Adam Piccolotti, and Patricio Freire.
On the other side, the result Queally marks the second-straight setback following a vacant lightweight title challenge loss to Patricky Freire at Bellator 270. Prior to that, Queally picked up two second-round stoppage wins in a row, one of Freire, and the other against Ryan Scope.
Full results of Bellator 285 include:
Benson Henderson def. Peter Queally via unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-45)
Yoel Romero def. Melvin Manhoef via knockout (elbows) – Round 3, 3:34
Leah McCourt def. Dayana Silva via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-29, 29-28)
Pedro Carvalho def. Mads Burnell via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-29, 29-28)
Ciaran Clarke def. Rafael Hudson via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 2:50
Karl Moore def. Karl Albrektsson via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:36
Brian Moore def. Arivaldo Lima Silva via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Brett Johns def. Jordan Winski via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
Darragh Kelly def. Kye Stevens via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
Kane Mousah def. Georgi Karakhanyan via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Kenny Mokhonoana def. Alex Bodnar via technical submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 2:42
Asael Adjoudj def. Jordan Barton via TKO (head kick, punches) –Round 1, 2:39
Luca Poclit def. Dante Schiro via technical submission (modified arm-triangle) – Round 2, 4:31
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 285.