Patricio Pitbull flew to Saudi Arabia in mid-February to face Jesús Pinedo in a champion vs. champion match on the PFL vs. Bellator card on February 24th, but Gabriel Braga replaced the injured Pinedo. was forced to change his plans at short notice. Braga then withdrew just before the weigh-in, leaving the Bellator star with no opponents.
Pitbull said he “completed his mission” in Saudi Arabia, although there were no official matches. I returned to Brazil the morning after the event.
“We went to the warm-up room at the hotel and did five rounds of sparring there,” Pitbull said on the MMA Fighting show. Trocassant Franca Podcast. “We followed the schedule as if we were fighting. There were no real matches, but I went there and sparred with the twins that Eric Albarracin brought from Kazakhstan. [Idris and Chingis Idrisov]”
Pitbull has since agreed to defend his Bellator title at the Bellator Champions Series Belfast on Friday.
Pitbull lost weight in preparation for the canceled fight in Saudi Arabia, but said he has no problem dropping to 145 pounds for the first time in four weeks because he has “kept my weight low.” He explained that the decision to spar in Saudi Arabia was to reset his mind after the fight was ultimately called off.
“[I wanted to] You accomplish the goals that are programmed to happen,” Pitbull said. “I know it's frustrating for everyone to have a fight canceled, but you have to keep your body awake for the planned goal. When we did five rounds of MMA there, It was a fire. Anyone who witnessed the training knows it was no joke.”
The Bellator featherweight champion said there was “no contractual obligation” for the company to pay him after the contest was canceled, but clarified that camp expenses and lost time were compensated.
On Friday, Pitbull will put the belt on the line for the first time since October 2022, when he defeated Adam Borix by decision. In subsequent bouts, he came to Japan to defeat then-RIZIN champion Kleber Koike in a non-title bout, lost to Sergio Pettis for the Bellator flyweight belt, and to Chihiro Suzuki in a RIZIN lightweight quickie bout.
UFC and PFL veteran Jeremy Kennedy has won four of five fights since joining Bellator in 2020, earning him the gold medal with three straight wins over Emmanuel Sanchez, Aaron Pico and Pedro Carvalho. I'm trying.
“I don't think Jeremy Kennedy is a dangerous man who would hurt you,” Pitbull said. “He's going to dominate, he's going to stall. If you don't have the right strategy to get out of there, you're going to waste time and you're going to waste work. He's been working hard on his game. He can keep up the pressure the whole time, but we're ready to frustrate him from the first moment of the match to the end, so it backfires on him. It will be.”
