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Portugal’s [autotag]Pedro Carvalho[/autotag] has had to sit tight and wait, but his shot at the Bellator featherweight title has finally arrived.
Carvalho (11-3 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) will take on reigning two-division champion Patricio Freire for the 145-pound title in the quarterfinals of the featherweight grand prix at Bellator 252. The event takes place Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network/DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Carvalho booked his place in the last eight of the tournament with a second-round submission of Sam Sicilia at Bellator 226 in September 2019, and Freire (30-4 MMA, 18-4 BMMA) used his “champion’s choice” clause to pick the Portuguese fighter as his quarterfinal opponent.
The pair were set for a showdown in March but, with the fighters already weighed in and ready to go, the event was canceled on the day of the show as Bellator shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
It meant Carvalho’s shot at championship glory was put on hold while the promotion went into hiatus. But now, with Bellator now safely holding events in their “Fightsphere” at Mohegan Sun, “The Game” is ready to return to the cage and is as confident as ever that he can dethrone “Pitbull” and advance to the semifinals as Bellator’s new featherweight king.
Ahead of fight night in Uncasville, Carvalho chatted to MMA Junkie to share his thoughts ahead of the biggest fight of his career to date.