Darragh Kelly tips Donegal MMA pair for big things

Darragh Kelly says the sky’s the limit for two other rising mixed martial artists from Donegal.

‘Moville Mauler’ Kelly, who faces Jelle Zeegers in a featherweight bout at Bellator 299 in Dublin on Saturday, believes his younger brother Ryan and Letterkenny man Jordan Furey can make waves in the cage.

All three are trained at SBG Dublin, the home of UFC star Conor McGregor, whose head coach John Kavanagh is hands-on with all fighters in the stable.

“John is the best in the business,” Kelly says. “I have a strong team around me and John in the corner is just the icing on the cake.”

How an eight-hour training day helped to prime Darragh Kelly for latest test

Moville mixed martial artist Darragh Kelly faces Jelle Zeegers at the 3Arena as part of Bellator 299 on Saturday night. Kelly spent some time with UFC ace Gunnar Nelson in Iceland this summer

Ryan Kelly is 3-1 as an amateur and is due back in the cage again in a couple of weeks. Furey made his pro debut in June, announcing his arrival in style with a first round stoppage of Gabriel da Silva in Belfast.

Clan Wars 48 will give Kelly the younger and Furey a chance to further enhance their records and reputations.

Darragh Kelly said: “Ryan has come on leaps and bounds. He’s 19, he’s strong and a quick learner. He gives me a lot of trouble. He definitely has a bright future. He’s a big, strong young fella and he will go places.

“Jordan is a handful for anyone. He has serious power in his hands. He’s one of the toughest guys I know. He has a serious work rate around it too.

“If they stay on course, there’s no reason they can’t have great careers.”