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Fairytale return for Ukrainian champ Yaroslav Amosov in Dublin

Updated / Sunday, 26 Feb 2023 09:39
Yaroslav Amosov (L) connects with Logan Storley
Yaroslav Amosov (L) connects with Logan Storley

It was a fairytale return to the cage for Yaroslav Amosov in Dublin at Bellator 291 with the Ukrainian champion scoring a dominant win in his unification bout against interim champion Logan Storley.

After pausing his career to defend his native Ukraine, Amosov, competing a year and a day since his homeland was invaded by Russia, was greeted like a hometown hero at the 3Arena.

The crowd applauded as vignettes of his time on the frontlines played before the headline fighters entered the cage.

Amosov won all five rounds on each of the cards, and following the victory, he sent a message to his fellow Ukrainians.

"Ukrainian people, I love you," said Amosov. "One year yesterday, crazy Putin started a war in my country. Thank you, Ukrainian army for defending my country. Thank you who helped my country. Please don't forget."

The first round played out exclusively in the striking department, with Storley sporting a cut over his right eye to commemorate the action. The onslaught continued in the second, Amosov adding calf kicks to his arsenal, as the American continued to chase the action.

A far cry from the back and forth action of their first meeting in 2020, Storley struggled to keep pace in the third as Amosov gave the first glimpses of his celebrated grappling game. Amosov appeared to be on the verge of finishing the fight in the fourth, but Storley managed to stay in the fray despite his depreciating engine.

The fight was all but done in the fifth as fans marvelled at Amosov’s improved striking in his two year absence, as well as Storley’s durability.

Sinead Kavanagh (L) lands a punch on Janay Harding

Although it wasn’t the best attended Bellator event at 3Arena, the Irish fans still had plenty to cheer about with Dublin’s Straight Blast Gym leaving the venue with a tally of eight wins, four losses.

In the co-main event, Jeremy Kennedy wasted no time taking honorary Irishman Pedro Carvalho to the ground. The Canadian stuck to the number-three ranked featherweight like glue throughout the affair, never allowing him to unleash the skillset that has been displayed in his Dublin outings thus far.

After the signature chorus of "Zombie" by The Cranberries carried him into the bout, fan favourite Peter Queally fought at a frantic pace in the first against America’s Bryce Logan, with both competitors leaving the opening stanza wearing the spoils of war on their faces.

The songs soon turned to sighs in the second round when Logan stopped the bout with an elbow followed by grounded strikes, stunning the Irish crowd into silence.

Heavy-handed Sinead Kavanagh looked her menacing best returning from the knee injury she sustained in her All-Ireland clash with Leah McCourt.

Although Kiwi Janay Harding established her kicking game early, she couldn’t match the mauling power of the former Bellator title challenger, who claimed a routine decision win.

Opening the main card, undefeated Ciaran Clarke was at his suffocating best, completely dominating short-notice opponent Leonardos Sinis with a performance that left no doubt in the three cage-side judges' minds. After having his hand raised, Drogheda’s Clarke improved his record to a stellar 7-0.

Former Cage Warriors light-heavyweight champion Karl Moore edged a decision after a stern test from Maciej Rozanksi. Although the fight won’t be celebrated for its theatre, Belfast’s Moore may be in a better position to call for banner names like Yoel Romero, who he targeted after his last win at the Dublin venue.

After sending Luca Iovine to the canvas in the opening exchanges of their bantamweight tussle, Wexford’s Brian Moore superior striking likely saw him take a split decision win over the veteran European campaigner. Following the fight, "The Pikeman" called for a showdown with seventh-ranked Leandro Higo.

Earlier, Richie Smullen capped off a successful return to Bellator after avoiding some substantial submission attempts from Piotr Niedzielski.

Also representing the John Kavanagh team, Kenny Mokhonoana, Asael Adjoudj and Darragh Kelly came away with wins to bolster their fledgling careers. The other defeats for SBG came via Charlie Ward, who lost a decision to Mike Shipman, and a split decision loss for Daniele Scatizzi in the event’s curtain jerker.

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