Kiely is ready to rock with Bellator
RICHIE Kiely is back looking to kick up a lot of dust in top professional MMA with his new promoters Bellator.
The Tallaght welterweight proved one of the most divisive figure in his short three-fight spell with BAMMA, but his contests generated a massive amount of interest - something that was not lost on Bellator who lured him out of retirement with a four-fight contract following his loss to Alex Lohore.
Richie Kiely is preparing for his first fight with Bellator
The first of those fights will see him face-off against Frenchman Mickael Bucher in Bellator’s Dublin show on Saturday, February 23.
Kiely, who is back in action for the first time since November 2017 when he lost to Lohore in a fight into which he came with a serious ACL injury, is promising a devastating Bellator debut.
And after having served up stunning knockouts in his opening two fights against, Keith McCabe and Daniel Olejniczak, few would bet against him doing it again next month.
“Mickael Bucher is a big athlete, explosive, powerful, but he’s never come up against anyone with my skillset,” Kiely told The Echo.
“I just cover too much ground too quickly and he’s not going to know what angle he’s getting hit from. My footwork and speed is elegant and graceful but it’s also really really dangerous. It’s going to be like getting hit by a ghost.
“This lad is standing in my way so I’m just going to run through him. I’m going to blow him out of the way.
“Fights get a lot of TKOs, but I put people to sleep and that’s what I’m going to him. I hit like a heavyweight and after the first jab, he’s going to panic. That’s what happed to Keith McCabe and Daniel Olejniczak
“I was the face of BAMMA and now I’m going to make a real statement and put this whole division on notice.
“People have seen only a small snippet of my skillset and people are buzzing to see me back and see what I can do.
“After the Lahore fight there was a sense of anti-climax. People knew about the knee and why I lost. I’d done my ACL and I was practically fighting on one leg.
“But people are delighted to see me back. Even those who don’t like me can’t fault the fact that I’m exciting to watch,” he insisted.
