The Bellator featherweight champion already knows who he wants to fight next, and it’s a surprisingly familiar opponent. After defeating Adam Borics at Bellator 286, Patricio Freire believes it may be time for the to settle the score against A.J. McKee in a rubber match for the belt.
In an interview with Ag Fight, ‘Pitbull’ talked about Aaron Pico’s shoulder injury and how it stopped the prospect from scoring a win and making himself the likely next title challenger. With no other clear contenders in sight, the Brazilian sees the current situation as an opportunity for his trilogy against McKee.
“There’s the trilogy with McKee, we need to settle our unfinished business. He talks a lot of trash. We need to put an end to that big mouth of his. (The trilogy) has been gaining traction. Especially because of that (Aaron Pico’s injury). Had Pico won his fight, he would probably be the next challenger, but it wasn’t the case. It’s looking it’s going to be the McKee trilogy.”
In his last outing, Freire scored a unanimous decision win over Borics. Although he was unable to finish the fight, the Brazilian was proud of his performance, emphasizing how he could display several skills on the ground and on the feet. At the same time, the 35-year-old was also critical of the way his opponent fought.
“I put on a clinic. I fought against a guy who only had one loss in his life. That was an MMA class. I nullified his striking, took him down at the right time. I mounted him, took his back the whole thing. He acted like he was in a street fight, a bar fight. He punched my elbow, kicked my butt, hit the tip of my knee. For the love of God, he fought a horrible fight. Anyone who saw the fight knows that.”
The victory over Borics put Freire (34-5) on a two-fight winning streak, with the aforementioned decision over McKee back in April 2022. In July 2021, the 35-year-old lost the belt briefly, when he got submitted by the ‘Mercenary’ via guillotine choke, in their first encounter.
