Rivalries: Daniel James

Daniel James was viewed as nothing more than a dangerous journeyman a few years go but now has the look of man who intends to hang around for a while.

Having emerged as an unlikely contender in the Bellator MMA heavyweight division, “The Predator” will do battle with Gokhan Saricam in a featured Bellator 297 attraction on Friday at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. James, 41, enters the cage with a career-best five-fight winning streak in tow. He has delivered 14 of his 15 professional victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission, five of them inside one round.

As James makes final preparations for his showdown with Saricam, a look at a few of the rivalries that have helped chart his course to this point:

Daniel Gallemore

The Elevation Fight Team export retained the Victory Fighting Championship heavyweight title and barely broke a sweat while doing so, as he dismissed James with a guillotine choke in the first round of their VFC 57 headliner on May 5, 2017 at the Kansas Expocentre in Topeka, Kansas. An Evan Gattis doppelganger, Gallemore drew the curtain 1:24 into Round 1. James was ineffective with his approach and allowed his adversary to lead the dance. Gallemore closed the distance, ate a few shots on the way in and clipped the Chicago native with a clean left hook at close range. He then let fly with uppercuts and zeroed in on the neck once a compromised James allowed his defenses to lapse. Gallemore tightened his squeeze, transitioned to a high-elbow grip and prompted the standing tapout. It remains the second-fastest finish of his career.

Brett Martin

An illegal knee strike resulted in James being disqualified and cost him the vacant Legacy Fighting Alliance heavyweight championship in the fifth round of his LFA 77 main event with the “Big Dog” on Sept. 27, 2019 at the Mystic Lake Casino Hotel in Prior Lake, Minnesota. The end came 1:12 into Round 5, though their encounter seemed doomed from the start. Martin missed weight nearly seven pounds the day before, making him ineligible for the title and seemingly setting in motion a series of unfortunate events. Still, it was a competitive back-and-forth affair through four rounds. Controversy struck in the fifth, where James—who had committed fouls on more than one occasion earlier in the bout—connected with multiple illegal knees that resulted in an immediate pause to the action. Martin was deemed unfit to continue soon after and awarded the disqualification. The LFA heavyweight throne remained vacant for nearly two more years.

Tyrell Fortune

Thriving in his role as underdog, James put away the decorated amateur wrestler with punches and elbows in the second round of their Bellator 288 heavyweight showcase on Nov. 18, 2022 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. Fortune, who entered the cage as a healthy -300 favorite, bowed out 27 seconds into Round 2. He seemed to have the situation under control for much of the first round, where he took down his counterpart, bled time off the clock with ground-and-pound and eventually jumped onto James’ back to sink a rear-naked choke. Those efforts bore no fruit. James survived, turned into top position and dropped heavy hammerfists and elbows. He might have generated a finish with a little more time, but the tide had certainly turned. James uncorked a ferocious right uppercut at the start of Round 2, flooring Fortune in the center of the cage. He then swooped into top position to seal the deal with a volley of punches and elbows.

Marcelo Golm

James moved one step closer to title contention in the Bellator MMA heavyweight division when he wrecked the Brazilian with punches in the third round of their Bellator 293 main event on March 31, 2023 at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California. The Midwest Training Center export tagged Golm’s figurative toe 26 seconds into Round 3. Not all went according to plan for James. Golm took charge through two rounds with thudding leg kicks, grinding clinches and a takedown that he managed to pair with positional advances and ground-and-pound. It was not enough to keep his heavy-handed adversary at bay. James rang the American Top Team rep’s bell with a right uppercut early in the third round, then followed it with a left hook and another uppercut. Golm hit the canvas in a dazed state and in no condition to shield himself from further punishment.