Bellator Belfast: Fabian Edwards secures second title shot, but James Gallagher suffers defeat

Fabian Edwards improved his record to 13 wins and just three defeats

Fabian Edwards fired himself back into title contention by beating Aaron Jeffery at Bellator Belfast on Friday.

All three judges scored the fight 29-28 for Edwards, who stuck to his gameplan and landed some eye-catching elbows.

The Englishman was fighting for the first time since being stopped by middleweight champion Johnny Eblen last September.

"I was winning that fight, I made a wrong decision, I got caught but I'm coming," Edwards said of Eblen.

The routine win sees Edwards retake his position as the number one contender in Bellator's middleweight division.

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Edwards, 30, was composed over three rounds, showing no ill effects of the first knockout loss of his career in his last outing.

He was rarely troubled by 31-year-old Jeffery, who opted to grapple as much as possible over the three rounds.

Edwards, however, showed intelligence in the clinch, aiming knees to Jeffery's torso and firing off short, sharp elbows when he could.

A strong uppercut quickly followed by a stinging right hand wobbled Jeffery in the final round, but Edwards was unable to find a finishing blow.

Edwards and his team, which included his brother and UFC champion Leon Edwards, erupted into celebration as his 13th career win was confirmed by the scorecards.

"I can do it all," Edwards said. "I wanted to put hands on that man, but he turned it into a grappling match."

Gallagher beaten on home soil

James Gallagher picked up the third defeat of his career

Featherweight James Gallagher suffered disappointment on home soil as he was beaten convincingly on points by Leandro Higo.

Gallagher, a regular at Bellator's Dublin shows, had only fought once before in Northern Ireland as a professional.

Hailing just an hour and a half from Belfast, it was not a happy return as Gallagher slumped to his third career defeat in 15 fights.

Despite bouncing into the cage with the crowd's backing, Gallagher produced a relatively flat performance over three rounds.

Higo was dangerous on the counter and clipped Gallagher in the first round with a spinning back elbow.

Gallagher appeared to lack ideas on how to punish his Brazilian opponent on the feet in the second and was dominated in the final round after being taken down.

Dejected, he took a moment to the side of the cage to collect himself before his defeat was confirmed by the scorecards, then congratulated Higo.

Once a fighter overflowing with confidence outside and inside the cage, Gallagher faces another rebuild after two defeats in his past three outings.