James Gallagher has a new opponent for his upcoming Bellator matchup this August, as confirmed by several insiders familiar with the promotion’s plans. Gallagher is now set to square off against James Gonzalez at Bellator 298, which is scheduled to take place on August 11th at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

This matchup comes after Cris Lencioni, who was originally slated to fight Gallagher, suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this month, as reported by his wife Marca in a social media post. Gallagher will finally get the chance to step back into the cage after suffering a pair of withdrawals since losing to Patchy Mix at Bellator 270 in November 2021.

Prior to his loss to Mix, Gallagher had notched four consecutive victories, three of which were by submission. On the other end of the ring is James Gonzalez, a former CFFC champion who has won four of his last six bouts. His last fight was a unanimous decision loss to Aaron Pico at April’s Bellator 295. However, Gonzalez comes into this matchup with some momentum after handing Cody Law his first professional loss at Bellator 282 in June 2022.

In the welterweight division, Bellator 298 will feature a main event bout between Logan Storley and Brennan Ward. However, for Gallagher and Gonzalez, the spotlight will be focused squarely on their matchup, as both fighters look to make a statement and move up the ranks in one of the world’s premier MMA promotions.