Following an injury to original headliner James Gallagher, Benson Henderson vs. Roger Huerta has been elevated to the Bellator 196 main event.
Gallagher, a fast-rising undefeated Irish featherweight fighting out of Conor McGregor’s Straight Blast Gym, was originally slated to headline Bellator 196 opposite undefeated Hungarian Adam Borics on April 6 at Budapest Sports Arena in Budapest, Hungary.
That was until Gallagher had to withdraw from the fight because of an injury. MMAWeekly.com’s Damon Martin confirmed the news originally reported on The MMA Hour on Monday, noting that Gallagher suffered a hand injury, but should not be sidelined for any extended length of time.
With Gallagher vs. Borics canceled, Bellator slotted in a match-up between former UFC and WEC lightweight champion Benson Henderson and veteran Roger Huerta into the Bellator 196 headlining spot.
Henderson (24-8) made the move from the UFC to Bellator a couple years ago, but hasn’t had the best of luck. In his four bouts under the Bellator banner, Henderson has defeated only Patricio Freire. Two of his three losses have been championship bouts. He lost to Andrey Koreshkov at welterweight before losing to Michael Chandler at lightweight.
Huerta (24-9-1, 1NC) was once one of the top stars in the UFC roster, but after leaving the UFC on the heels of a two-fight skid, he has also found the going difficult outside of the Octagon. Having spent the first couple years of his post-UFC career with Bellator, Huerta has been fighting primarily in Asia for the past few years, going 4-6 after leaving the UFC.
Huerta is in a better place coming into the match-up with Henderson, however, having won his last two fights.
Bellator 196 takes place on April 6 at Budapest Sports Arena in Budapest, Hungary.
