Pettis denies 'Pitbull' historic third title

The win was Pettis' fifth since joining Bellator, extending his streak to six.

Sergio Pettis beat Patricio 'Pitbull' Freire by unanimous decision to retain his bantamweight title and deny the Brazilian the chance to become a three-weight world champion at Bellator 297 in Chicago.

Featherweight champion and former lightweight title holder Freire, 35, was looking to become the first triple champion in a major MMA promotion.

Pettis was joined afterwards in the cage by interim champion Patchy Mix, setting up a unification bout between the pair.

In the main event at the Wintrust Arena, Russia's Vadim Nemkov defended his light-heavyweight title as he outclassed Yoel Romero over five rounds.

Nemkov, 30, significantly out-struck Romero, 46, in every round, preventing the Cuban from becoming the oldest ever champion in a major MMA organisation.

• Watch the Bellator 297 main card on BBC iPlayer
• Watch the Bellator 297 prelims on BBC iPlayer

Pettis sends reminder to bantamweight division

Freire's achievements in Bellator led many to believe, including Pettis, that he is the greatest fighter to ever grace the promotion.

He is a record three-time featherweight champion and became the second person in Bellator history, after Ryan Bader, to hold belts simultaneously in two divisions when he beat Michael Chandler for the lightweight title in 2019.

In attempting to become the first triple champion in a major MMA promotion, Freire was dropping down to bantamweight for the first time and described the 10-pound weight drop as "the easiest of his career".

Pettis, meanwhile, was competing for the first time in over 18 months - the longest lay-off of his career - after suffering a serious knee injury which required surgery.

During his time on the sidelines, American fighter Mix, 29, claimed the interim title after winning Bellator's Bantamweight Grand Prix tournament, with many pundits and fans expecting a unification bout with Pettis upon his return.

Bellator opted for Freire, however, with Pettis describing the bout as an opportunity to add to his legacy.

Freire was the first ever challenger in a Bellator champion versus champion bout to drop down a division, and much of the pre-fight discussion was how the weight cut would affect his performance.

The difference in size wasn't too noticeable between the fighters, but Pettis carried the faster speed which proved crucial in victory.

After a timid first round with both fighters landing leg kicks from distance, Pettis started to open up in the second, landing body-shot combinations and a flamboyant spinning wheel kick which hurt Freire.

Pettis continued to out-strike Freire as blood poured from a cut above the Brazilian's left eye, and although Freire landed a couple of takedowns, he was unable to deal any damage.

Cheered on by brother and former UFC champion Anthony at cageside, Pettis safely navigated the end of the fight, countering a more urgent Freire with swift combinations in the final round as the Brazilian looked for a knockout.

After the bell rang, both fighters bowed to each other before Freire sunk to his knees in contemplation upon hearing he had lost.

"I want to dedicate this fight to anyone going through bad times. Depression, pessimistic thoughts, for anyone who's overlooked," said Pettis.

"Bellator, I'm taking out your poster boys - [Kyoji] Horiguchi, Pitbull - it's about time I got some respect."

Romero disappoints in title bout

Nemkov is unbeaten in 12 fights, last suffering defeat in 2016.

Coached by MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko, Nemkov has dominated the light-heavyweight division since winning the title off Ryan Bader in 2020, defending the belt four times going into the bout to extend his win streak to 10.

Romero set up the opportunity with Nemkov following two impressive knockout victories, his most recent coming against Melvin Manhoef in September.

The former UFC middleweight title challenger is one of the most popular fighters on the Bellator roster, with his explosive punching power and unpredictability captivating fans.

But Romero's performance against Nemkov was largely disappointing as he rarely threatened throughout.

Nemkov was the early aggressor, landing punches and kicks to Romero's body and head seemingly at will, and the pattern continued.

In the second round, stats showed Nemkov had thrown 88 punches compared to Romero's 10, with the Cuban looking to burst with power and stun the Russian.

Romero is a former world champion and Olympic silver medallist in freestyle wrestling, but like in previous fights he didn't shoot for takedowns, despite being heavily out-struck.

The third round saw Romero wobbling around the cage, pretending to be hurt and trying to lure Nemkov into a mistake, and although the theatrics fired up the Chicago crowd as they chanted the Cuban's name, it wasn't enough to put the champion off his gameplan.

Romero found brief moments of success in the latter rounds, landing a superman punch and a takedown towards the end, but Nemkov never appeared in any danger and was comfortably ahead on the scorecards as the bell rang.

"I am very proud I shared the cage tonight with such a great opponent like Romero," said Nemkov.

"I was trying to land my punches from distance but he has a very strong head. I got confused a little bit, I saw he was acting up a little bit [in the third round], but kept doing my job."