The stakes have been raised for the Peter
Queally–Patricky
Freire rematch at
Bellator 270.
Bellator president Scott Coker announced during “The MMA Hour.”
on Wednesday that Patricio
Freire has vacated the lightweight belt, which he has not
defended since stopping Michael
Chandler in 61 seconds at Bellator 221 in May 2019. As a
result, Queally vs. Freire will be for the vacant 155-pound
championship.
Patricio
Freire addressed the situation shortly thereafter on Twitter.
The younger “Pitbull” brother was a two-division champion before
losing his featherweight crown to A.J. McKee at
Bellator 263 this past July. For now, his focus is on regaining
that title, while allowing his brother to have his own golden
opportunity.
“Honor and family come first,” he wrote. “When I first won the LW
belt it was just about revenge. It was still an honor, but with the
loss at 145 I’m starting over. It’s time for the LW division to
move on and for [Patricky
Freire] to have his shot. My focus is on A.J. and him
only.”
Honor and family come first. When I first
won the LW belt it was just about revenge. It was still an honor,
but with the loss at 145 I’m starting over. It’s time for the LW
division to move on and for @PatrickyPitbull
to have his shot. My focus is on AJ and him only.
#TheMMAHour— Patricio Pitbull (@PatricioPitbull)
October 6, 2021
Bellator 270 takes place on Nov. 5 at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland and
is headlined by the Queally-Freire title tilt. The card will air on
Showtime. The event was previously topped by a bantamweight clash
pitting James
Gallagher against Patrick
Mix.
Queally and Freire initially fought at Bellator 258 on May 7.
Queally opened a cut on his opponent’s head with a slashing elbow
from the bottom position, which prompted the cageside physician to
wave off the bout prior to Round 3. Anchored at SBG Ireland, the
32-year-old Queally has been victorious in three of his last four
professional outings.
Freire has now lost two straight fights including a decision defeat
to Tofiq
Musayev in the finals of the Rizin lightweight grand prix in
December 2019. Before that skid, the 35-year-old Brazilian had won
seven consecutive bouts, with victories over the likes of Tatsuya
Kawajiri, Roger
Huerta, Benson
Henderson and Josh
Thomson.