Bellator MMA Featherweight kingpin Patricio “Pitbull” Freire wants to ‘silence the doubters’ as he readies himself for the biggest test of his career, a match-up with Benson Henderson at Bellator 160, August 26.
The Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. will play host to a legitimate Bellator super-fight on Friday night with former Bellator Featherweight Champion Pitbull making the move up to 155lbs to face Henderson.
A former two-time world Lightweight champion, “Smooth” Henderson is considered one of the hottest free agent signings in the promotion’s history.
Equally, Freire himself believes that a win over perennial Lightweight fighter Henderson will solidify his standing as one of the best fighters in the world.
He explained: “I am Featherweight, he’s Lightweight, there’s a big height difference as well, a weight difference. It’s the biggest challenge and by beating him it opens some people’s eyes about my skills and my place in this sport. But I’m looking forward to this challenge and I’m sure I can overcome it.”
Henderson, at 1.75m, has around a four inch height advantage over Pitbull. Similarly, the American enjoys a five-inch reach advantage, with his range being a significant part of his past success.
To negate Henderson’s reach and his ability to cruise the fight, Pitbull needs to make it dirty on the inside. The little Brazilian packs a mean punch, with ten of his wins coming by knockout.
Since making his Bellator debut in 2010, Pitbull has gone on to become one of the most important fighter’s in the promotion. Freire has never shied away from a challenge, having fought the likes of Wilson Reis, Diego Nunes, Pat Curran and Daniel Straus during his six-year tenure.
A former world champion and a two-time Bellator tournament winner, Freire’s opportunity to face a fighter the calibre of Henderson and receive a worthy pay-day, has been a long time coming for the 29-year-old.
“This has been an opportunity that I [have] beat[en] myself up for. I didn’t come here by chance, it is something I have accomplished and I have built everything for this,” said Freire. “This is the type of fight I’ve been longing for a long time and I believe in myself, I believe in God, I believe in my team and I’m looking forward to it, to getting the best of him.”
Meanwhile, this fight spells Henderson’s returns to his home weight class at 155lbs. The MMA Lab man made his debut at Bellator 153, making the jump up to 170lbs. Despite a worthy performance, “Bendo” was unable to topple Welterweight champion Andrey Koreshkov, dropping a decision loss in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Regardless of the defeat, Freire believes little can be deduced from Henderson’s showing, claiming “Bendo” simply lacked focus in such a high pressure match-up.
Henderson has made a name for himself throughout his career for his impeccable cardio and conditioning, something which could be a huge factor on Friday night. But Freire – who believes his conditioning can match that of his American opponent’s – feels fully equipped for his greatest challenge to-date.
“It’s been a few years since I last felt tired in a fight, I’ve been preparing for title fights for a few years now. It’s not something that I’m really concerned about. I think I can keep up and I can dictate and go into my rhythm. I think I’ll be ready for 15 minutes of fighting if necessary.”
It’s not me vs Benson Henderson for a title shot. It’s me vs Henderson, period. He’s the biggest fight at LW. Chandler is a bonus.
— Patricio Freire (@PatricioPitbull) 15 August 2016
The fight between Freire and Henderson will likely resolve the Lightweight conundrum over who champion Michael Chandler will face next. Apparent bad blood still remains to be resolved between Chandler and Pitbull after “Iron Mike” dispatched of Freire’s brother Patricky at Bellator: DYNAMITE 2.
Despite the high stakes on the line in California, Patricio showed little regard for Chandler’s Lightweight championship, claiming he would throw the belt ‘in the trash’. Solely focused on facing Henderson, Pitbull made it evident that a potential showdown with the champion is purely a ‘bonus’.
“I don’t really care about the title shot, what I care about is to rip Michael Chandler’s head off. The belt, you can throw it in the trash. I’m focused on this fight with Benson Henderson, which is the biggest step in my career, he’s the biggest name in Bellator’s Lightweight division, he’s the biggest fight I could have in Bellator over any other fight in the promotion right now.
“It’s going to silence the doubters if I win this fight, it’s going to be significant to my career, to all my accomplishments, Michael Chandler is just a bonus. He made it personal, this is a fight that means a lot to me, Michael Chandler made it personal, I want to kick his head off. The belt, the title shot, I don’t care, it’s not important.”
It was in the moments following Chandler’s knockout of Patrcio’s older brother Patricky which solidified his rivalry with the Missouri native. As the champion celebrated his emphatic knockout loss, Patricio confronted Chandler, exclaiming his desire for a fight. This led to an adrenaline fuelled Chandler retaliating, insisting he would kill Pitbull.
Despite such an expletive comment, Freire explained that his disgust towards Chandler doesn’t derive from there, but in fact from a subsequent interview with MMA Junkie, where the 30-year-old claiming he would ‘take him and his whole family out in one night’.
“I don’t really care that he said that. What I keep in the back of my mind, was him saying he would shut up my entire family. When he says my entire family he means my grandparents, he means my father, my mother so that’s what I keep in the back of my mind.“
The #Bellator160 main event is set! Former champ @PatricioPitbull takes on Former champ @BensonHenderson! @spike pic.twitter.com/XkUYJ37KCc
— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) 25 August 2016
A future fight between Freire and Chandler could mean big business for Bellator; with Chandler’s appearance at the weigh-ins confirming their intention, but for now the hard-nosed Pitbull is focused on getting past Henderson, as he looks to silence those who have already counted him out against Bellator’s most formidable Lightweight.
