Patricio “Pitbull” Freire News

Cole Shelton - June 15, 2023

Anthony Pettis will be backing his brother Sergio Pettis in a big way ahead of Bellator 297. In the co-main event of Bellator 297 on Friday night in Chicago, Pettis is looking to defend his bantamweight title for the second time as he takes on Patricio Pitbull. The Brazilian is the current Bellator featherweight champ and former lightweight champ but is dropping down in weight as he looks to become a three-weight world champion.

Josh Evanoff - June 14, 2023

Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull expects to stop Sergio Pettis this weekend. The Brazilian has been out of action since a non-title clash with Kleber Koike Erbst last December. There, Patricio Pitbull scored a unanimous decision win, his third in a row. That April, he re-earned the featherweight title by avenging his prior loss to A.J. McKee, defeating ‘Mercenary’ by decision.

Harry Kettle - June 7, 2023

Sergio Pettis has got his eyes set on a second world title if he’s able to get past Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire at Bellator 297. Next weekend in Chicago, Sergio Pettis will go head to head with Patricio Pitbull. He’ll be defending his Bellator bantamweight championship against a man who is widely considered to be the best fighter in Bellator history. If Pitbull is able to secure the win, he’ll also become the first man to be a three-weight champion in a major organization.

Fernando Quiles - May 28, 2023

Bellator Featherweight Champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire believes media members have been ignoring what he has accomplished. Not only is Freire the reigning three-time Bellator champion at 145 pounds, but he’s also the promotion’s former lightweight champion. If he makes weight and defeats Sergio Pettis at Bellator 297, he’ll become the new Bellator Bantamweight Champion, making him a rare three-division MMA champion.

Harry Kettle - October 4, 2022

Henry Cejudo has given his thoughts on a potential crossover match-up between Patricio Pitbull and Alex Volkanovski. It’s no secret that Alex Volkanovski is widely considered to be one of the best mixed martial artists in the world, largely due to the incredible record he’s been able to string together on his way to becoming the UFC featherweight champion.

Harry Kettle - October 3, 2022

Patricio Pitbull has given his thoughts on a possible crossover fight against UFC featherweight king Alex Volkanovski. When it comes to figuring out who the pound for pound best fighter in the sport is, it’s hard to look past Alex Volkanovski. The Australian sensation has turned away everyone that’s stepped in his path since joining the UFC, including Max Holloway on three separate occasions.

Fernando Quiles - October 2, 2022

Patricio Freire isn’t about to apologize for his performance at Bellator 286. “Pitbull” put the Bellator Featherweight Championship on the line against Adam Borics at Bellator 286. The action took place inside Long Beach Arena in Long Beach, California. The title fight went the distance, but the lack of action left fans feeling restless.

Chris Taylor - October 1, 2022

The fighter salaries from tonight’s Bellator 286 event have been revealed and to no surprise champion Patricio Freire topped the list. Freire (34-5 MMA) was returning to action this evening for the first time since reclaiming the promotions 145lbs title with a unanimous decision win over A.J. McKee at April’s Bellator 277 event.

Josh Evanoff - September 29, 2022

Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull has his eyes set on bantamweight gold. The Brazilian has been out of action since his rematch with A.J. McKee in April. In their first encounter, ‘Mercenary’ picked up a first-round submission victory to win gold. In the rematch, Pitbull flipped the script, and re-won his title by unanimous decision.

Josh Evanoff - August 3, 2022

Patricio Pitbull, Adam Borics, and A.J. McKee have been added to Bellator 286 in October. In April, the Brazilian faced off with ‘Mercenary’ for the second time. They first faced off at Bellator 263 in July 2021, with the Bellator featherweight title on the line. That outing saw McKee capture the strap with a stunning first-round submission victory.

Josh Evanoff - April 22, 2022

Scott Coker has revealed that fans will likely see a Patricio Pitbull and A.J. McKee trilogy bout in the future. The two featherweights are coming off back to back clashes with one another. Their first encounter at Bellator 263 in July 2021 saw McKee win the Bellator Grand Prix by submission. Their follow-up bout at Bellator 277 last week saw Pitbull reclaim the featherweight title via unanimous decision.

Chris Taylor - April 16, 2022

Rampage Jackson says that Friday’s ‘McKee vs. Pitbull 2’ fight resulted in the worst robbery he’s ever seen in MMA. McKee (18-1 MMA, 18-1 BMMA) and Freire (33-5 MMA, 21-5 BMMA) collided for a second time in the headliner of Bellator 277 last night in San Jose.

Chris Taylor - April 15, 2022

Tonight’s Bellator 277 event is headlined by a featherweight title fight rematch between A.J. McKee and Patricio Freire. McKee (18-0 MMA, 18-0 BMMA) will be looking to earn his first career title defense when he squares off with ‘Pitbull’ for a second time this evening. ‘The Mercenary’ has won 5 of his past 7 bouts in the very first round, including his recent defeat of Freire.

Susan Cox - April 15, 2022

Bellator 277 takes place today, Friday April 15th with official results beginning at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT). The event takes place at SAP Center in San Jose, California. The main card airs on ‘Showtime’ following the online prelims.

Josh Evanoff - February 16, 2022

Bellator 277 has officially been announced for April 15th. The event is packing heat and has two of their biggest title fights of the year scheduled for it. The main event of the card will be the second chapter in the rivalry between A.J. McKee and Patricio Pitbull. The two first met at Bellator 263, where ‘Mercenary’ defeated the champion via first-round submission to claim featherweight gold. The bout was the finals of Bellator’s 2020 featherweight Grand Prix.

Adam D Martin - October 6, 2021

Former Bellator lightweight champion Patricio Pitbull issued a statement after he decided to vacate his title belt at 155lbs. Pitbull announced on social media on Wednesday in a statement that he is vacating the Bellator lightweight title. Bellator president Scott Coker told The MMA Hour that with the title being vacated, Pitbull’s brother Patricky will now get the vacant title shot. He will meet Peter Queally in a rematch for the belt at Bellator 270 on November 5 at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. In his statement, Pitbull explained his decision to give up his belt at 155lbs.

Drake Riggs - August 2, 2021

AJ McKee is the new Bellator featherweight king. Bellator 263 this past Saturday night saw the 26-year old crowned to close out the 145-pound one-million-dollar Grand Prix. To do so, McKee put away the greatest fighter in promotional history, Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, in just a single round.

Adam D Martin - August 1, 2021

New Bellator featherweight champion AJ McKee says Max Holloway is his “dream fight” after beating Patricio Pitbull at Saturday’s Bellator 263. McKee and Pitbull met in the main event of Bellator 263 in what marked the finals of the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix, a 16-man tournament that began nearly two years ago and only just now finished. Although Pitbull is the champion and one of the most experienced fighters to ever compete in Bellator, he was finished early in the first round when McKee rocked him with a head kick and then choked him out with a guillotine. It was an incredible finish by McKee and proved that he is one of the best featherweights in MMA.