Chael Sonnen offers hope as Bellator's Cris Lencioni remains unconscious for over a week - "He did blink"
Former UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen has given a positive update as Bellator's Cris Lencioni remains unconscious.
This past week, it was revealed that the Bellator featherweight suffered a health scare during training and fell unconscious. There were reports of him potentially being in a coma circulated online, but the situation has received a somewhat positive update.
Speaking about Cris Lencioni during a recently posted video on his YouTube channel, Chael Sonnen expanded on the incident and revealed that Lencioni was just about to start training when he fell unconscious:
"He was just in the process of getting his workout in and he lost consciousness. So, the folks at the gym, and thanks heavens for them, they just sprung into action. Called 911, an ambulance comes."
Further in the video, Chael Sonnen also provided good news and stated:
"We also had one piece of very good news and that was Cris's wife was in the room with him, and she told him this before they knew she was in there and threw her out, but she told him, 'Hey, here's what's going on and here's what they think. If you hear me and you're with me, I need you to blink.' And he did, he did blink."
Catch Chael Sonnen's comments in the video below (1:16):
Cris Lencioni was set to fight James Gallagher at Bellator 298
The Bellator featherweight currently boasts a professional MMA record of 11-3 and was last seen in action against Blake Smith this past April, when he won via third-round submission.
What a submission from @crissunshinemma 👏
Watch #Bellator294 @MonsterEnergy Prelims fueled by @7elevenhawaii on the Bellator YouTube channel 🍿 https://t.co/cBZqH0a8NF
Considered to be a rising star in the promotion, Cris Lencioni was set to return to the Bellator cage in August at Bellator 298 against James Gallagher. Gallagher has been out of action for a while and was last seen inside the cage back in 2021 against Patchy Mix.
Their upcoming bout was viewed as a great opportunity for both fighters to get to the next level in the organization. However, the highly anticipated bout between Cris Lencioni and James Gallagher won't go ahead due to the condition of Lencioni.