The fight Bellator fans have been waiting for has been booked. MMA Fighting was the first to report this evening that the promotion has finalized the featherweight Grand Prix finale between the champion Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire (32-4) and AJ McKee (17-0).
The Bellator Grand Prix finals is set for July 30th. If you’re a die-hard Bellator fan, this is the dream fight you’ve been waiting on. AJ McKee is the single biggest threat to Patricio Pitbull’s reign over the featherweight division.
McKee is perfect in his professional career and he’s fought all 17 fights under the Bellator banner. He’s developing into the promotion’s next star and he has his eyes set on taking out the most decorated fighter in the promotion’s history.
What makes AJ McKee so special is how good he is wherever the fight goes. He’s great on the feet, but he’s electric on the mat. In his last performance, he pulled off the most unique submission I’ve seen in some time against Darrion Caldwell at Bellator 253.
It was McKee’s third straight finish and his fifth finish in his last five fights. He’s riding a ton of momentum heading into the Bellator Grand Prix finals. If anyone is going to take Pitbull’s title, it’s going to be McKee.
Tough test for the Bellator champion
That said, it’s going to be incredibly tough taking that title away from Patricio Pitbull. Pitbull is riding a seven-fight win streak and he’s finished his last two opponents in the first round. Patricio Pitbull is both the Bellator lightweight and featherweight champion.
The most decorated and accomplished fighter in Bellator history is Patricio Pitbull. He’s been fighting with the promotion since 2010 and he holds victories over the likes of Michael Chandler and Juan Archuleta.
Pitbull has 23 finishes over the course of his career. The last time we saw Pitbull was at Bellator 255. He took on Emmanuel Sanchez in a rematch from 2018. In 2018, Sanchez went the distance with Pitbull.
However, this year, he couldn’t even make it a round. Pitbull made a massive statement as he retained his title. He’s looked better than ever recently and he looks up to stopping the hype train of AJ McKee. These two fighters both look unstoppable right now and someone has to lose. I can’t wait for July 30th.