Bellator star Patricio “Pitbull” Freire feels like the global sports media just isn’t giving him the respect he deserves. Pitbull is weeks away from competing for a potential record-setting third title with the Bellator promotion when he challenges bantamweight champ Sergio Pettis on July 16. Freire has previously held the Bellator featherweight and lightweight titles.
If he pulls this off, he will be the first MMA fighter in history to claim three different titles in the same major promotion. Despite this, Pitbull told Trocação Franca that he doesn’t feel like the promotion gets the credit it deserves compared to, say, the UFC.
Why Patricio Pitbull Feels Ignored By The Media Despite Gunning For A Third Bellator Title
“I stopped thinking about that a long time ago. I have a lot of submissions, I have a lot of knockouts, I’ve been fighting overseas since 2010, and I was never the ‘Submission of the Year,’ I was never the ‘Knockout of the Year,’ the ‘Athlete of the Year.’ I think media has been ignoring me a bit, but my results don’t depend on what the media thinks.
Some people might think I’m upset with that, that I’m not being valued, but I have an organization that values me, that does everything it can. An excellent platform. [Bellator] has plans to come to Brazil now and they definitely will.
I do it for my legacy. Maybe global sports media still doesn’t recognize me after I win this title, but it will be hard to explain in the history of the sport how that guy won three belts in different divisions and you didn’t see, you didn’t notice. It will be on them. I’m not worried.”
Pitbull continued, singing the praises of some of Bellator’s biggest stars. “I don’t understand the resistance against the great fighters we have in Bellator, but it’s getting hard to hide it.
It’s hard to hide Fedor [Emelianenko], who ended his career in Bellator. It’s hard to hide Cris Cyborg, the greatest of all-time — there’s Amanda Nunes, I have a ton of respect for her, she’s my friend, double champion and beat Cris, but the career as a whole, Cris was the greatest.
I’m making some noise too with the numbers and records and belts — maybe another one — so it’s hard to tell the story [of MMA] without talking about us.”
Freire does, however, want to return to the featherweight division after he secures the bantamweight strap. “A two-division champion has that kind of work ahead, I have to be ready to gain or cut weight and defend the title.
I think the offer will be good [to return to bantamweight and face Mix]. I want to them to make me smile [with an offer]. I’m already smiling, but I want more. This is something not many can do, it’s a hard cut, so it has to pay a bit more. But Bellator is taking good care of me.”
