Never count out Paul “Semtex” Daley.
He may have been the underdog leading into Bellator 183, but renowned knockout artist Paul Daley got back to what he does best, stopping Lorenz Larkin in the second round of their fight.
Taking place in San Jose, California; serving as Larkin’s backyard seeing as he resides in Riverside, the odds were heavily against “Semtex” and after his lacklustre performance against Rory MacDonald in London earlier this year, it was hard to argue with that.
It seems however, whenever the pressure is off, that’s when we see the best version of the British hard-hitter.
At the SAP Centre that’s exactly what happened. It was a tentative first round from both, but Larkin managed to take Daley down, likely winning the first exchange. However, on the feet it was clear that Daley had the advantage and in round two he returned to his venomous ways, knocking out Larkin with a superb spinning back first, followed by a left hook and a couple of lefts and rights.
https://twitter.com/BellatorMMA/status/911793067602075648
It’s another career highlight for Daley and a win which at any other time, would likely put him in contention of the title. With Rory MacDonald set to challenge Douglas Lima for the welterweight championship in January 2018, though, that prospect is less than likely.
With Daley’s title hopes shelved until Spring 2018, it leaves the door open for the grudge match with Michael “Venom” Page to finally materialise.
Meanwhile, MVP is set to make his boxing debut under David Haye’s new promotion on October 20, as the London Shootfighter Capo aims to keep active, having not fought since a split decision win over Fernando Gonzalez in November 2016. That is partly down to injuries, but also through his inability to effectively negotiate with Bellator.
Both Daley and “MVP” were involved in brawl following the Nottingham man’s loss to MacDonald at Bellator 179, further adding fuel to the fire that a sanctioned fight in London could mean big money for all parties.
In the past, Daley has often been dismissive of a fight with MVP, brushing off the young challenger in favour of his own desire to chase the welterweight title. With circumstances now leaning away from that, and Bellator President Scott Coker previously confirming his hopes to match them up in the first quarter of 2018, now is better time than any to pull the trigger on the battle of the British brawlers.
