MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the co-main event for Bellator 297.
Bellator 297 takes place Friday at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Sergio Pettis (22-5 MMA, 4-0 BMMA)
Staple info:
- Height: 5’6″ Age: 29 Weight: 135 lbs. Reach: 69″
- Last fight: Knockout win over Kyoji Horiguchi (Dec. 3, 2021)
- Camp: Roufusport (Milwaukee, WI)
- Stance/striking style: Orthodox/kickboxing
- Risk management: Good
Supplemental info:
+ Bellator bantamweight champion
+ RFA flyweight title
+ Taekwondo black belt (2nd degree)
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
+ 4 knockout victories
+ 4 submission wins
+ 6 first-round finishes
+ Solid footwork
+ Accurate jab and cross
^ Pulls and returns well
+ Dangerous head kicks
^ Strikes well off of the breaks
+ Improved wrestling ability
^ Good hips and wrist controls
+ Aggressive and attacking guard
Patricio Freire (35-5 MMA, 23-5 BMMA)
Staple info:
- Height: 5’6″ Age: 35 Weight: 135 lbs. Reach: 65.5″
- Last fight: Decision win over Kleber Koike Erbst (Dec. 31 2022)
- Camp: Pitbull Brothers MMA (Brazil)
- Stance/striking style: Orthodox/kickboxing
- Risk management: Good
Supplemental info:
+ Bellator featherweight champion
+ Former Bellator lightweight champion
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
+ 11 KO victories
+ 12 submission wins
+ 12 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Explosive athlete
^ Deceptive distance closer
+ Accurate hooks and crosses
^ Coming forward or off the counter
+ Hard leg kicks
+ Underrated wrestling ability
+ Good transitional grappler
+ Dangerous guillotine choke
Point of interest: Kicks and counters
The main event for Bellator 297 features a bantamweight title fight between two men who are familiar with kicks and their associated counters.
Emersed in martial arts since childhood, Sergio Pettis has arguably done a better job than his brother, Anthony Pettis, in regards to translating a striking process into the cage. Although Pettis is not usually as flashy as his brother, there is an economic flow to the way in which he mixes his punches and kicks.
Not only does Pettis work in his kicking attacks seamlessly, but his point-fighting style of footwork has complemented his boxing nicely, utilizing his heightened sense of range to fuel his pulls and returns.
Pettis is also good about keeping a consistent pace throughout contests, typically working behind a stinging jab. Whether Pettis is doubling up on his jab offensively or checking and pivoting with it defensively, the 29-year-old always seems to keep his patent counter-right at the ready.
As we saw in his first title defense, Pettis does keep some flamboyant attacks in his back pocket. However, he’ll need to be mindful of the counters coming his way this Friday.
Initially hitting the Bellator scene as a heavy-handed brawler with a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Patricio Freire has steadily sharpened his striking skills during his formative fighting years with the promotion. He quickly demonstrated the ability to work forward off of feints and pressure, as well as be able to sit back and counter when needed.
Utilizing more of a karate-centric stance, at times, Freire can either enter space quickly to intercept his opposition (as seen in his lightweight title fight with Michael Chandler) or exit to safety when appropriate. Though I believe we’ll still see this stance this weekend, I will be curious if Freire does decide to pressure into the pocket more given his current counterpart’s flexibility at range.
Outside of a couple of occasions in the first round, Freire generally has good eyes in exchanges. He either waits for his moment to counter or attempts to beat his opponent to the punch. Pressuring forward will not only help draw out strikes, but it may also aid him in setting up any potential takedowns.
Nevertheless, Freire, due to his defensive sensibilities and stature, will still need to be extra respectful of everything from knees to front kicks.
Point of interest: Winning the wrestling
Considering the potential chaos on the feet, no one should be shocked to see someone take this fight to the mat.
For my money, that man will likely be Freire.
Training for years under the tutelage of acclaimed wrestler Eric Albarracin (wrestling coach to the likes of Henry Cejudo and Paulo Costa), Freire has been able to improve his wrestling ability by applying high-level techniques to his already impressive athleticism and jiu-jitsu prowess.
Patricio Freire seamlessly combining jiu-jitsu and wrestling as he parlays a knee-elbow escape to a butterfly hook sweep attempt – utilizing the elevation to swim inside for a single to switch things around. #Bellator255 pic.twitter.com/F3dp2tdkLN
— Dan Tom (@DanTomMMA) March 31, 2021
From balancing on one leg while shutting down takedowns to changing his level to dump an opponent, the 17-year pro has been increasingly difficult to control over the most recent stretch of his career.
Freire also has gotten tighter and more conservative with his grappling game overall, playing more of a positional savvy style when the occasions call for it (as I suspect that this current matchup could qualify).
That said, he’ll still need to respect the improvements of Pettis.
Demonstrating good posture to go along with consistent hand-fighting and underhook awareness, Pettis has gotten a lot better at holding his own inside of clinching and grappling scenarios over the years.
Working with Izzy Martinez in past camps, we have seen steady improvements to Pettis’ wrestling, especially in the transitional phases of his grappling. Already possessing crafty leg dexterity and wrist controls, Pettis now shows more process and understanding to his actions, as he has been able to successfully navigate out of some tight spots en route to acquiring the Bellator title.
However, if Pettis does end up on the bottom, then he’ll need to be extra careful when attempting to get back to his feet.
Pettis does well when it comes to using his opponent’s initial momentum against them in the form of sweeps, but he is also not beyond taking a gamble and turtling out to his base. Despite being a fan of this getup style, it could cost Pettis dearly in this matchup.
Aside from turtling and tripoding allowing for back exposure, it can also give way to problematic scenarios from the front-headlock position. Against a guillotine specialist like Freire, that could be a death sentence.
Point of interest: Odds and opinions
The oddsmakers and the public are favoring the Brazilian, listing Freire -205 and Pettis +166 via FanDuel.
Despite not disagreeing with the chosen favorite, I do warn anyone who is completely writing off the underdog in this spot.
Aside from the fact that Freire is not beyond being taxed on the two-way street that is counter-striking, this will be the featherweight champion’s first fight down at 135 pounds.
Although this is the weight class that I and many believe Freire should have been fighting in all along, I can’t pretend that this is the ideal part of a career for a 35-year-old to be making a drop to bantamweight. For that reason, no one should be shocked if Pettis continues to buck his decision trend with another upset knockout this weekend.
I, however, will still be siding with the proven pound-for-pound talent in “Pitbull.”
Not only do I see Freire having success with calf kicks given the weight distribution of his opponent’s stance, but the Brazilian is particularly potent when countering jabs – something that will serve him well when looking at Pettis’ reliance on said technique.
Add in Pettis’ propensity to surrender precarious positions in grappling stanzas, and I can’t help but see a submission victory for Freire come the second round.
Prediction: Freire inside the distance
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.
