Tag: Sergio Pettis

Video: Whose legacy will be impacted most between the two Bellator 297 title fights?

We discuss how Yoel Romero, Vadim Nemkov, Sergio Pettis, and Patricio Freire could have their legacies impacted in a big way at Bellator 297.

Bellator has one of the biggest events in its history Friday in Chicago with two title fights at the top of the bill.

In the main event of Bellator 297, [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] puts his light heavyweight title on the line against former UFC title challenger [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag]. In the co-feature, [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] returns from injury to defend his bantamweight title against featherweight champ [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag].

Nemkov is in the conversation for the best light heavyweight in the world, and if he’s victorious against the always-dangerous Romero, his argument will only strengthen. If Romero wins at 46, he will have an incredible achievement in the late stage of his career.

Freire is attempting to make history again, as he looks to claim a world title in a third division. Questions surround him about his weight cut for this one, but also, Pettis may have some rust to knock off after being out of action since December 2021.

Who has the most on the line here? History and legacies are at play, but which outcome has the biggest impact? Would it be Romero’s late title run? Would it be Freire daring to be great, and even going further for a fourth title at flyweight? Will a Pettis victory place him among the greats at 135 pounds?

Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Mike Bohn, Dan Tom, and Brian “Goze” Garcia answer those questions with host “Gorgeous” George Garcia. You can watch their discussion in the video above and check out this week’s full episode below.

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Bellator 297 video: Why Yoel Romero ‘faced off’ with Vadim Nemkov virtually from his hotel bed

Bellator’s headlining champs and challengers had their first faceoffs of fight week Wednesday 1,350 feet in the air – absent one key player.

CHICAGO – Bellator’s headlining champs and challengers had their first faceoffs of fight week Wednesday 1,350 feet in the air … absent one key player, though.

Light heavyweight champion [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (16-2 MMA, 8-0 BMMA) puts his title on the line against [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) in the Bellator 297 main event.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] (35-5 MMA, 23-5 BMMA) chases history when he tries to add the bantamweight title to his current featherweight belt. He challenges 135-pound champ [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (22-5 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) in the co-feature, and a win will make him the first fighter in Bellator history to have titles in three different divisions.

Wednesday, the fighters took questions from the media at a press conference at the Skydeck at Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), Chicago’s tallest building. At 1,451 feet, the Willis Tower is the 23rd tallest building in the world, third tallest in the U.S. and has the tallest public viewing area of any building in the country.

But Romero elected to stay at the host hotel in downtown Chicago rather than go to the 99th floor of the building. Romero, he said, is afraid of heights. He joined the press conference through a video feed in his hotel room. That meant no faceoff for the main event, but there were three others.

Check out the highlights from the co-main event faceoff in the video above, as well as the faceoff between [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (17-6 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) and former light heavyweight champion [autotag]Phil Davis[/autotag] (24-6 MMA, 11-3 BMMA) and an appearance from Chicago’s own [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] (15-6-1 MMA, 3-0 BMMA), a heavyweight contender who opens the main card against Gokhan Saricam (8-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA).

Bellator 297 takes place Friday at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.

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Bellator 297 breakdown: ‘Proven pound-for-pound talent’ should win Sergio Pettis-Patricio Freire fight

MMA Junkie fight analyst Dan Tom takes a closer look at the Bellator 297 co-headliner between Sergio Pettis and Patricio Freire.

MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down MMA’s top bouts. Today, we look at the co-main event for Bellator 297.

Bellator 297 takes place Friday at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

UFC veterans in MMA and boxing action June 16-17

Check out which veterans of the UFC are in combat sports action across the globe this weekend.

This week, the UFC is back home in Las Vegas for UFC Fight Night 225.

The event at the UFC Apex features a middleweight main event between former title challengers [autotag]Marvin Vettori[/autotag] and [autotag]Jared Cannonier[/autotag].

Elsewhere, many other combat sports events are taking place that feature a number of familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

This week, there are a total of 22 veterans of the global MMA leader competing in MMA this week from June 16-17.

Check out the names and details about their bouts below.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

Sergio Pettis: Bellator 297 title defense vs. Patricio Freire the ‘biggest fight of my career’

Sergio Pettis believes his upcoming title fight against Patricio “Pitbull” is the biggest fight of his career.

CHICAGO – [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] feels he’s in a pivotal moment of his fighting career.

The Bellator bantamweight champion is just days away from defending his belt against arguably the greatest fighter the promotion has ever seen – former Bellator lightweight champion and current Bellator featherweight titleholder Patricio Freire. The bout goes down in the co-main event of Bellator 297, which takes place Friday at Wintrust Arena.

Pettis (22-5 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) believes this is the biggest fight so far of his career.

“Biggest fight of my career, for sure,” Pettis said at Tuesday’s Bellator 297 media day. “Especially after the situation coming off 18 months and getting thrown into the deep end with a killer like Patricio. Definitely a big task ahead of me and the biggest fight, for sure.”

Pettis hasn’t fought since defending his belt against Kyoji Horiguchi in December 2021 at Bellator 272. On the other hand, Freire (35-5 MMA, 23-5 BMMA) has been active. Although logging in his first fight of 2023, “Pitbull” is coming off a successful 2022 where he picked up three straight wins.

Freire is attempting to get a title in a third weight class – something no one has done in a major MMA promotion. Pettis understands the magnitude of the situation, but won’t let Freire’s legacy talk get to him.

“I’m not really worried about this whole narrative of three-time champion or even just me coming back,” Pettis said. “I feel like I’ve gotten better, to be honest. I’ve gotten a lot better in this sport and as a person. I’m just really excited to do that. All that narrative at the end of the day is cool for social media and all that stuff, and all the media and whatever, but I’m going to go out there and do what I do. Get this job done and create my legacy.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.

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Bellator 297 pre-event facts: Patricio ‘Pitbull’ can be first to achieve triple champ status

Check out all the facts and figures about Bellator 297, where Patricio Freire is on the cusp of an unprecedented MMA accomplishment.

The biggest Bellator event of the year so far goes down Friday with Bellator 297, which takes place at Wintrust Arena in Chicago with a main card that airs on Showtime following prelims streamed on MMA Junkie.

A championship doubleheader is featured on the top of a loaded card. In the main card, [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (15-2 MMA, 8-0 BMMA) will attempt to make his third light heavyweight title defense when he takes on [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 2-1 BMMA). The co-headliner, meanwhile, sees the return of bantamweight titleholder [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (22-5 MMA, 4-0 BMMA), who attempts to defend against current featherweight and former lightweight champ [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] (35-5 MMA, 22-5 BMMA) in a potentially historic affair.

For more on the numbers behind the two title fights, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts about Bellator 297.

Bellator’s Sergio Pettis ‘definitely’ interested in champ-champ status but admits flyweight cut is brutal

With Bellator’s addition of the flyweight division, Sergio Pettis isn’t ruling out the possibility of a return to 125 pounds.

With Bellator’s addition of the flyweight division, [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] isn’t ruling out the possibility of a return to 125 pounds.

Pettis (22-5 MMA, 9-5 BMMA), the current Bellator bantamweight champion, defends his title against featherweight champ Patricio Freire (35-5 MMA, 23-5 BMMA) in the co-main event of Bellator 297 on June 16 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.

Bellator will crown an inaugural flyweight champion when Kyoji Horiguichi (31-5 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) takes on Makoto Takahashi (16-1-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) at Bellator x Rizin 2 on July 30 at Saitama Super Arena.

Pettis had a solid flyweight run in the UFC, scoring wins over former multiple-time title challenger Joseph Benavidez and current 125-pound champ Brandon Moreno. While the drop back down would be hard for Pettis, he’d consider it if a big opportunity presented itself.

“Definitely something I’m interested in,” Pettis told MMA Junkie Radio. “Obviously to have that champ-champ status, but man, that cut to 125 is not fun for anybody. The older I’m getting, I’m like, ‘Man, I don’t know if I really see myself going back down.’ If it made sense and the opportunity presented itself, the competitor in me and the ego in me would be like definitely could make it. But how I feel at 135 is a lot different than how I feel at 125.”

“Pitbull,” a former lightweight champion and current featherweight title holder, will attempt to win a belt in a third weight class when he makes his 135-pound debut against Pettis. As someone who’s competed in two different weight classes, Pettis thinks the extra 10 pounds to cut will likely impact Freire.

“It’s definitely interesting,” Pettis said. “I fought at 125, so I know the difference of how I felt at 135 to 125. That extra 10 pounds makes a hell of a difference. He’s getting older. I did it at a younger age – he’s older – so we’ll see how his body adjusts. We’ll see if he’s as durable.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.

Sergio Pettis: I’m facing ‘death row’ at Bellator, beating Patricio Freire would be ‘great for my career’

Bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis is happy with big Bellator tests. Next he gets featherweight champ Patricio “Pitbull” Freire in Chicago.

Bantamweight champion [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] is happy to continue getting tested at Bellator.

Pettis (22-5 MMA, 9-5 BMMA) defends his title against featherweight champ [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] (35-5 MMA, 23-5 BMMA), who will attempt to win a title in a third weight class in the co-main event of Bellator 297 on June 16 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.

Freire widely is considered the greatest Bellator fighter in history. Pettis has fought top-level competition throughout his UFC and Bellator career, and sees the addition of “Pitbull” to his resume as very valuable.

“If I beat Patricio and be able to stop him from being a three-time world champ, it’ll be great for my career and my resume,” Pettis told MMA Junkie Radio. “I’m here to fight some of the best in the world, and my last couple of fights for Bellator, you’re seeing it.

“I’m fighting guys who have really great records. I fought Juan Archuleta when he was 25-2. I fought (Kyoji) Horiguchi when he was 29-3. Now I’m fighting Patricio ‘Pitbull,’ 35-5. So they’ve got me over here at death row, definitely, at Bellator. They’re putting me with the big boys and I’m showing that I can hang – and I can bang too.”

Pettis rallied to knock out Horiguchi in his most recent outing to notch his first title defense. A torn ACL kept him out of the recent bantamweight grand prix, but he’s eager to pick up where he left off and try to play spoiler once again vs. Freire.

“It puts a chip on my shoulder,” Pettis said. “He’s thinking that he can come through and come down to 135 and walk through me and get what I have, which is the belt. To go out there and spoil that moment for him would be a great moment for my career.

“Just based off of the scenario, coming off an ACL injury, I know these guys are looking past me and thinking I’m going to come back and not be the same fighter. They’re right: I’m not going to be the same fighter. I’m different. I’ve learned so much last year.”

Freire will be dropping to 135 pounds for the first time in his career. Having competed at flyweight and bantamweight, Pettis knows how taxing the cut down can be and questions how it will impact Freire.

“It’s definitely interesting,” Pettis said. “I fought at 125, so I know the difference of how I felt at 135 to 125. That extra 10 pounds makes a hell of a difference. He’s getting older. I did it at a younger age – he’s older – so we’ll see how his body adjusts. We’ll see if he’s as durable.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.

Video: Where does Bellator grand prix champ Patchy Mix rank among world’s bantamweights?

After a dominant run through Bellator’s grand prix, does Patchy Mix have a case as the world’s best bantamweight?

At Bellator 295 in Honolulu, [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] created the highlight of the weekend with his Knockout of the Year candidate against Raufeon Stots to win the bantamweight grand prix.

Mix is now $1 million richer and interim champ, setting up a unifier with the winner of [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag], who fight on June 16 at Bellator 297.

After his dominant run through the bantamweight tournament, Mix declared himself the best 135-pound fighter in the world. Is he? And if not, where does he stack up?

Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, “Gorgeous” George Garcia and Danny Segura answer those questions with host Mike Bohn. You can watch their discussion in the video above and check out this week’s full episode below.

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel. You can watch this week’s episode in the video above.

Spinning Back Clique: Nate Diaz street fight, Sergei Pavlovich’s record, Patchy Mix’s grand prix win, more

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique” live stream covering the biggest topics in MMA, including some big UFC announcements.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts. This week’s panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Danny Segura and “Gorgeous” George Garcia will join host Mike Bohn live at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate:

  • [autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag] is on a tear, and setting UFC records. In the main event of UFC Fight Night 222, the hard-hitting Russian made quick work of Curtis Blaydes, recording his sixth-straight first-round knockout. Pavlovich wants to wait for the winner of Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic, as he feels he has done enough work to warrant a title shot. Is he right? How do we like his chances against Jones or Miocic?
  • At Bellator 295 in Honolulu, [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] created the highlight of the weekend in a Knockout of the Year candidate victory over Raufeon Stots to win the bantamweight grand prix. He’s now $1 million richer and is interim champ, setting up a unifier with the winner of [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag], who fight on June 16 at Bellator 297. Is Mix the best bantamweight in the world? If not, where does he stack up?
  • The UFC dropped a tidal wave of fight announcements on us over the past week, including [autotag]Belal Muhammad[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] at UFC 288 next week in Newark, N.J. The promotion pulled off booking this fight on 16 days’ notice for a PPV that needed it, and it’ll be 5 rounds, with both men claiming the UFC has promised them the next title shot after [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag]. Are you surprised Burns accepted it given he just fought and/or surprised Muhammad took it because he just finished Ramadan?
  • Among the numerous fight announcements for UFC 290, which takes place July 8 in Las Vegas and marks the 11th annual International Fight Week, was a “middleweight title eliminator” between [autotag]Robert Whittaker [/autotag]and [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag]. It’s increasingly rare that UFC outright labels fights as No. 1 contender bouts, but Dana White said in his announcement that the winner of this will face [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] later this year, likely in Sydney, Australia. Was this the right booking for the division?
  • [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag] found himself in the headlines on Friday night, and it wasn’t for the best of reasons. First, he attended a Misfits Boxing event in New Orleans where his teammate Chris Avila was competing, and was caught on camera ringside throwing a water bottle at reality star Chase DeMoor that started a scuffle.
    A few hours later, footage surfaced of Diaz on the streets of New Orleans in what appeared to be a multi-person altercation. Diaz choked one man out cold, with his head slamming against the concrete. There are still many unknowns about what happened, but we do know what we saw on video, and that’s Diaz – a superstar professional fighter – choking out a non-pro in a very dangerous situation. Will Diaz face serious repercussions for his actions?

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel. You can watch this week’s episode in the video above.