Bellator 295: Patricio 'Pitbull' Freire's move to bantamweight 'great for division', says Raufeon Stots and Patchy Mix
- Published
Raufeon Stots and Patchy Mix fight for the interim bantamweight title on Saturday in Hawaii
Bellator 294 & Bellator 295 |
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Venue: Neal S. Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii Dates: 21 and 22 April |
Coverage: Live coverage on BBC iPlayer on Saturday from 01:00 BST and Sunday from 01:30 |
Raufeon Stots and Patchy Mix say they welcome Patricio 'Pitbull' Freire's move to bantamweight.
The two-weight Bellator champion moves down to 135lbs on 16 June to face reigning champion Sergio Pettis.
On Saturday Stots and Mix contest the final of the bantamweight tournament and the winner of their fight will face either Pettis or Freire for the title.
Both Americans are eager for the opportunity to face Freire, who Stots referred to as the "Bellator GOAT".
"It's great for the division, great for the promotion," Mix said. "I hope he gets it done. I want to test myself against the number one guy."
Should Freire win, he will become the first three-weight world champion in Bellator's history after winning titles at lightweight and featherweight.
Freire is considered by most as the greatest fighter ever in Bellator as a result.
"I couldn't be happier that he's making that step," Stots, 34, said.
"He's on the cusp of something nobody's done in MMA. You hear people talk about it, but nobody's done it.
"He'll be remembered forever if he accomplishes that."
'This is the two best bantamweights in the world' - Mix
Mix, 29, and Stots will fight for the interim bantamweight title and $1m (£803,000) prize money at Bellator 295 in Hawaii.
Pettis was forced to withdraw from the tournament before it began last year because of injury.
Stots currently holds the interim title and is on an 11-fight winning streak.
Like his opponent, Mix has just one defeat on his record and has upset the odds to reach the final after overcoming one of the favourites, former champion Kyoji Horiguchi.
"I feel like this is the biggest test," Stots said of Mix.
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"I wouldn't have said that at the beginning of the tournament; I don't think many people thought he would beat Horiguchi.
"But now, I think this is the two best bantamweight fighters in the world, and I stand by that."
He added: "The more chips I put out, the more I have to defend.
"I want to be able to lose something. I want it to be like, 'Hey man, you were talking a lot, so if you don't live up to what you say, you're gonna have some backlash'."
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