Revisit the fight between Charlie ‘917’ Leary and Kiefer Crosbie from Milan, Italy.
Bellator European Series 9 took place October 3, 2020 at the Allianz Cloud in Milan, Italy. The venue became a “Fight Island” of sorts featuring multiple international events in a short time span. That included the ES 9 card where “Strabanimal” James Gallagher faced Cal Ellenor in the main event, but the opening contest proved to be just as exciting.
“917” Charlie Leary (16-11-1) would have been the villain had the card been held in Dublin, Ireland as intended. The English fighter is as tough and resilient as he is experienced, but the popularity of local favorite Kiefer Crosbie (8-1) would have been through the roof — particularly with a SBG Ireland teammate headlining in the main event.
Sometimes the best laid plans of mice and men go awry though, and not everyone from the same team can win on the same card. Leary knocked Crosbie down repeatedly and poured on hammers from the top, but Crosbie somehow survived the onslaught until the bell ended round one… or did he? The announcers believed it was “seconds away from being stopped” and as it turned out IT WAS. Crosbie was medically disqualified before round two.
Both men seemed to be unhappy with the stoppage, but the good news is that they could always run it back again once Bellator can return to Europe for a new series of shows.
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