Patricio Pitbull is now a three-time Bellator welterweight champion after avenging his loss to AJ McKee in the Bellator 277 headliner.
Pitbull made a unanimous decision with a score of 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47. McKee was visibly shocked by the decision after five rounds of chess match with the multiple champion, whose first two titles in the lightweight category came in rematch.
“IN [our first fight]”I came in peace,” Pitbull said afterward. “I came for the war today and I’m wearing a belt at home.”
Unlike the first match, McKee and Pitbull did not start explosively. Apart from a side kick from the door, McKee had no desire to give up his marked height and gain an advantage. When Freire exploded with combinations, he moved away and continued firing from outside. The audience at the SAP Center in San Jose, California, was not thrilled by this approach.
However, when McKee failed to change Pitbull levels, he became more impatient in the second round. This allowed Pitbull to take punches, using one to place the champion on the mat. Eager to get one back, McKee threw himself to his knees and nearly grabbed an injured right arm, prompting him to return to kicks.
The third round gave Pitbull the best performance while McKee played in attack and allowed him the counter-game he had mastered over the years. McKee’s right hand visibly stunned and struck. Pitbull jumped to suffocation with a guillotine, another characteristic move, and made the American a few tense before escaping.
McKee returned to basics in the fourth and did his best, beating Pitbull on his feet in exchange. In the fifth round, Pitbull seems to have dropped its foot from the gas in a round that led to several significant attacks. The guillotine strangulation apparently deprived Pitbull of his speed and strength, and McKee managed to complete the takedowns at the beginning and end of the round.
But in the end, the judges saw Pitbull’s work as more significant and returned him to the victory column after his first meeting with McKee ended in a failure in the first round.
“He’s a tough guy,” said Freire of McKee, who suffered his first loss in 19 professional matches. “He is a great opponent. It was a difficult battle for me, but I came to set my strategy [on]”
McKee joins Pat Quran and Daniel Strauss as opponents who failed to deal with Pitbull in the rematch for the lightweight title.
The unfortunate end of Bellator’s light grand prix
Vadim Nemkov remains the champion in the light heavyweight category, despite the change in momentum that controlled Corey Anderson until the third round of their meeting in the final of the Grand Prix in the light heavyweight category.
An accidental blow to Anderson’s head opened a huge wound on Nemkov’s forehead and forced the doctor in the cage to cancel the match. As the cuts came before the end of the third round, officials were forced to declare the battle without competition, leading to an unsatisfactory end to the co-main event.
Pico hits a healthy Edwards
Aaron Pico repeatedly punished the deputy with a short notice Adly Edwards before one of the shots of his body with a trademark set the end in motion.
The referee intervened to save Edwards in just 55 seconds in the third and final round, an achievement in itself for the tough fighter after inflicting about half a dozen bulls on his liver and more than twice as many in the head. When Pico didn’t hit his body, he made easy takedowns as his opponent moved to the counter. Then he fell to the ground and struck, and his elbows hit Edwards’ head. At the end of the second frame, his face was a map of the edges.
Pico is already on a six-game winning streak after two losses ruined his career as one of Bellator’s most active new players. He initially had to face Jeremy Kennedy, he finished five of six opponents and can be expected for another ranked opponent.
Vassell is making a crazy comeback
Linton Vassell was on the verge of defeat after taking a short left hook from striker Tim Johnson, and after being on the ground and pounding, his heavyweight dreams seemed to hit a brick wall. Initially, Johnson was able to resist the fight, but when he got to his feet, he returned to the sail, still stunned by so many blows.
Johnson bumped the former Briton in the light heavyweight division, eventually opening an incision in his forehead, which may have given Wasel the time to clear his head and reverse his position. After climbing to the top, Vassell was brutal with elbows (at least one of which seemed to land illegally in the back of the head) and struck until the referee canceled the battle at 4:21 on the starting frame. It was a chaotic victory coming from behind Vasal, who has now won his last four. Johnson has already missed three in a row.
Complete results of Bellator 277:
Patricio Freire def. AJ McKee with unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47)
Corey Anderson vs. Vadim Nemkov declared free (random header) – Round 3
Aaron Pico def. Adly Edwards by technical knockout – 3 rounds, 0:55
Linton Wassel Def. Timothy Johnson by technical knockout (blows) – 1 round, 4:21
Tyson Miller Def. Ralan Gracie by technical knockout (stop doctor) – 1 round, 5:00
Tyrell Fortune def. Rakim Cleveland by technical knockout (strikes) – 1 round, 1:38
Dovletjan Yagshimuradov def. Rafael Carvalho by technical knockout (hits) – 2nd round, 4:04
Bobby Seronio III def. Calob Ramirez by knockout – 2 rounds, 2:14
Gaston Bolanos def. Daniel Kerry by technical knockout (strikes) – 1 round, 4:59
Kyle Cruchmer def. Michael Lombardo with unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Edwin De Los Santos def. Alberto Mendes with unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Rogelio Luna def. Socrates Hernandez by technical knockout – 3 rounds, 4:48
Laird Anderson def. JT Donaldson by submission (suffocation from behind) – 1 round, 2:44
Theo Hague def. Alan Benson through submission (suffocation from behind) – 1 round, 2:08
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