Bellator 275: Kavanagh stays strong to defeat McCourt

In one of the most anticipated all-Irish MMA fights of the last decade, Sinead Kavanagh claimed the biggest win of her career on Friday night at the 3 Arena in overcoming a knee injury to earn a decision win over Leah McCourt.

Following the victory, Bellator announced that Kavanagh would get a second shot at featherweight champion, Cris "Cyborg" Justino, following her defeat to the Brazilian last November.

Despite world renowned Gegard Mousasi defending his middleweight title in the main event against Austin Vanderford, it was the meeting of Belfast's McCourt and Dubliner Kavanagh in the co-main event that stole all the intrigue.

The infamous Irish fans were very involved from the first bell, throwing each punch and kick with the two fighters over the 15-minute affair.

The bout saw roles reversed with the heavy-handed Dubliner coming close to submitting grappling ace McCourt in the opening round.

After her strong first stanza, Kavanagh appeared to injure her knee, dropping to the ground twice as the knee gave way, but still managed to land powerful shots on McCourt from top position.

McCourt targeted the knee in the final round, but Kavanagh remained in the fray and finished the fight landing big blows on McCourt, to the delight of the Irish crowd.

"I couldn’t even stand," said Kavanagh in her post-fight interview.

"I went into a dog fight and I told you I was good with the ground game. I thought I was finished, I thought I was done, but I gritted my teeth and I got the win."

Following the co-main event, Mousasi made short work of Vanderford to defend his 185-pound crown. After stunning the American in a striking exchange, he finished the fight with heavy ground and pound midway through the first round.

Throughout the event, the