Bellator's A.J. McKee doesn't feel sorry for injured James Gallagher, calls for 'Pitbull'-Weichel winner

A.J. McKee is not rattled by the fact he’s in hostile territory for his first Bellator main event at Bellator 187.

McKee (9-0 MMA, 9-0 BMMA) meets Brian Moore (10-5 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) on Friday at 3Arena in Dublin in the Spike-televised headliner, which will air via tape-delay. The unbeaten prospect has been feuding with Ireland’s James Gallagher (7-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) for more than a year, and now he’s standing in his back yard.

Gallagher originally was scheduled for the main event spot at Bellator 187, but a knee injury that required surgery forced him off the card. McKee overtook top position after a shuffle to the lineup, and although “The Mercenary” believes he should’ve been fighting Gallagher all along, he said other parties wouldn’t oblige.

“Gallagher was main event, I was co-main, and I’m supposed to be the (expletive), yet, I’m coming to your hometown, and I’m fighting in your backyard when you’ve been calling me out?” McKee told MMAjunkie. “We should be fighting. It just keeps confirming that he’s scared. He’s little princess Gallagher. It’s a shame, but you can’t send a 19-year-old boy to do a man’s job. So that’s why they replaced him with Brian Moore.”

McKee said he doesn’t have sympathy for the fact that Gallagher can’t fight at home, either. The unbeaten 19-year-old underwent knee surgery on Oct. 19 and is expected to be out roughly two months before he can return to training. It’s a tough situation for a young fighter with massive upside, but McKee didn’t hesitate to pour it on.

“(Expletive) him,” McKee said. “I’ll kick him in his kneecap and send him into surgery again.”

With the matchup against Gallagher off the table for the time being, McKee said his focus is on bigger things in the 145-pound division. At 22, McKee already has amassed a nine-fight winning streak, all under the Bellator banner. A victory on Friday would give him the longest winning streak in Bellator history, and McKee said it’s time for something to change.

Although he’s in a headlining spot against a veteran opponent, McKee said he wants more. He claims to be prepared for championship-level competition, and while he understands Bellator’s process in trying to slowly build him up to that level, McKee said he’s tired of waiting.

“I thought (I’d get better competition) when I started getting bored and didn’t want to fight anymore,” McKee said. “It’s overdue. 10-0, seven finishes after this fight. They talk about who have I fought? Give me somebody to fight in the top three or top five. It doesn’t matter. (Bellator featherweight champ Patricio) ‘Pitbull’ (Freire) and (Daniel) Weichel fight next week (at Bellator 188). After that, throw me in there. The 145 division, it’s starting to move right now and get very active. I’m ready to go in there and whoop whoever has that belt. Hopefully it’s ‘Pitbull,’ because I like fighting small guys.”

For now, though, McKee said he’s focused on the task at hand. Suffering a setback just when he feels on the cusp of breaking through would be an unacceptable setback for McKee, so he’s taking Moore as seriously as if he were fighting the champion.

However, given the style matchup, McKee believes he’s in for another dominant night. He wants to put Moore away in spectacular fashion, and he hopes Gallagher, Freire, Weichel, and anyone else relevant in the featherweight division is watching closely.

“I love the matchup. I’m ready to drop some bombs,” McKee said. “He’s tiny. He’s a small guy. I got a half-a-foot reach on him. He’s got to deal with the cardio. He’s got to deal with the power. It’s going to be a fun fight for me. He’s got to get inside and get to me. That’s been everyone’s challenge and so far no one’s been able to do it.”

For more on Bellator 187, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.