It was a battle of attrition for Patricky Freire in the Rizin Fighting Federation lightweight grand prix.
Freire made it to the finals of the tournament at Rizin 20 on Tuesday, where he lost a unanimous decision to Tofiq Musayev at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Along the way, the Bellator title contender suffered multiple injuries.
The 33-year-old “Pitbull” brother revealed that he broke his hand in a 28-second stoppage of Luis Gustavo Felix dos Santos in a semifinal bout earlier in the evening. He then injured his left shoulder and right leg while falling out of the ring during a takedown attempt by Musayev in the finals. Freire appeared to be shaken up immediately after the fall but nonetheless continued to fight.
Thank you Japan, @bellatormma, @rizin_pr! Thank you everyone for the support. I’m happy to have lived this experience.
I broke my right hand in the first fight and injured my left shoulder and right leg when I fell from the ring.
I want to rematch Tofiq when I’m healed.— Patricky Freire (@PatrickyPitbull) December 31, 2019
Freire’s manager, Matheus Aquino, revealed an additional injury the fighter suffered during the matchup with Musayev.
“Patricky felt a pop in his right leg during the second round while he was moving around, which he believes is when the muscle dislocated from the bone,” Aquino wrote. “He still doesn’t know what kind of procedure (if any) will be done at the hospital. He has a cast on his right hand.”
Patricky felt a pop in his right leg during the second round while he was moving around, which he believes is when the muscle dislocated from the bone. He still doesn’t know what kind of procedure (if any) will be done at the hospital. He has a cast on his right hand. https://t.co/GfcuavtqQS
— Matheus Aquino (@MatheusDCAquino) December 31, 2019
The hard-fought loss to Musayev halted a seven-bout winning streak for Freire, who also knocked out Tatsyua Kawajiri in the opening round of the tournament on Oct. 12. Freire remains unbeaten in his last five Bellator MMA appearances.