Pitbull is not able to go the torch but.
Patricio Freire, Bellator franchise fighter, took a unanimous determination (49-46, 48-47, 48-47) on former undefeated prodigy AJ McKee to win the featherweight title on the Bellator 277 foremost occasion Friday night time in San Jose, California. Mackie beat “Pitbull” for the title by serving in simply 1:57 of the primary spherical final July.
Freire is now a three-time Bellator featherweight champion.
“On that day, I got here in peace,” Freire stated, referring to his loss to Mackie final summer season. “Immediately I got here to battle. And I am going to take the belt house.”
It was a detailed and difficult battle between two of the perfect fighters on this planet exterior of the UFC. ESPN ranked McKee No. 3 and “Pitbull” ranked No. 5 on this planet by featherweight.
There was a number of speak main as much as this combat about how the 27-year-old Maki, believed by many to be a future star, would battle UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovsky. However Pitbull silenced these discussions on Friday night time. He did a strong job within the first rounds, hitting McKee with leg kicks and punch set. On the third, Maki fell briefly by elevating his proper hand and greedy a decent guillotine.
Mackie was capable of escape this capitulation and do a few of his finest work within the late rounds. Mackie had strong units within the fourth spherical and a number of other takedowns within the fifth, and he virtually reclaimed Freire at one level. Within the last minutes, Mackie did probably the most injury, touchdown on combos along with his fingers, eradicating the elbow forcefully on the cage.
“He is a troublesome man,” Freire stated. “He is an enormous opponent. It has been a troublesome combat for me.”
Freire (33-5) has gained eight of his 9 bouts, together with a 61-second knockout for present UFC light-weight welterweight competitor Michael Chandler within the light-weight backstroke in 2019. The Brazilian nationwide held each the Bellator titles in featherweight and light-weight 2019-2021. He misplaced his featherweight belt to Mackie and gave up his light-weight gold final November to concentrate on featherweight.
Freire, 34, has probably the most wins (21), most featherweight wins (20), and most title combat wins (11) in Bellator historical past.
McKee (18-1) earned his Bellator 18-fight successful streak a shedding streak. The California native defeated Freire final July to win the title and Bellator World Senior Featherweight Championship, which netted him $1 million. Mackie, whose father and coach, Antonio, is a longtime combined martial arts fighter, has an unsure future with Bellator. As a title holder, he was tied right into a contract because of the promotion champion clause. However now he now not holds the belt.
The Bellator 277 co-main occasion resulted in a weird competitors. Corey Anderson fell in an unintended collision with the top from the very best place to Vadim Nemkov, who was severely lower off by the unlawful strike. Referee Frank Trigg stopped the match and dominated it no-compete at 4:55 of the third spherical.
Nemkov retained the Bellator Gentle Heavyweight Championship. The 2 had been additionally competing within the finals for the Bellator Gentle Heavyweight World Grand Prix, for $1 million. It appears doubtless that there can be a second match to find out that prize. Anderson seemed set to win when a head-on conflict occurred. When Trigg knowledgeable him of the choice to not attraction, he tossed a water bottle via the cage.
Trigg dominated it uncompetitive because of the unintended nature of the foul. Had the match gone into the fourth spherical, it might have gone to the scorecards for a technical determination. However because the suspension got here inside the first three rounds, it needed to be both a non-competition or disqualification by rule.
