Kyoji Horiguchi provides update following nasty KO loss to Sergio Pettis

Kyoji Horiguchi has provided fans with an update following his nasty knockout loss to Sergio Pettis last night at Bellator 272.

Pettis (21-5 MMA) and Horiguchi (29-3 MMA) squared off yesterday evening in Connecticut with the Bellator bantamweight title on the line.

Sergio was looking to earn his first career title defense, while Kyoji was looking to reclaim a belt he never actually lost.

Sergio Pettis had captured the promotions bantamweight world title this past May, scoring a unanimous decision victory over Juan Archuleta. That win had marked his fourth in a row, with the three most recent victories coming under the Bellator banner.

Meanwhile, Kyoji Horiguchi had entered Friday’s title fight with ambitions of reclaiming Bellator gold. The RIZIN standout had most previously competed in December of 2020, where he earned a stunning TKO victory over Kai Asakura.

Sergio Pettis KO’s Kyoji Horiguchi

Last night’s Bellator 272 main event ended in spectacular fashion. After seemingly cruising through the opening three rounds of the fight, Horiguchi got caught by a Pettis spinning backfist in round four that sent his title aspirations crashing to a abrupt halt (see that here).

The Japanese standout was left unconscious from the unorthodox strike and medical officials were called in to assist. Kyjoi Horiguchi was eventually forced to leave the cage on a stretcher and was later transported to hospital.

Now twelve hours removed from the violent setback, ‘The Gooch’ took to social media where he provided his fans with the following update.

応援してくださった皆様
期待に応えられなくて本当に申し訳ないです！自分は全然大丈夫なのでまた頑張ります！#Bellator272

— Kyoji Horiguchi (@kyoji1012) December 4, 2021

“I’m really sorry that I couldn’t meet the expectations of everyone who supported me! I’m okay at all, so I’ll do my best again!” – Horiguchi tweeted via google translate.

Prior to the frightening knockout finish in round four, Kyoji Horiguchi was seemingly dominating his fight with Sergio Pettis. With that being said, it will be interesting to see if Bellator officials attempt to book a rematch some point down the road.