Count Patricio Freire among those who was impressed by Patrick Mix ’s first-round knockout of Raufeon Stots in the finals of Bellator’s bantamweight grand prix on Saturday.
"No doubt it was a spectacular knockout,” Freire told Sherdog.com. “I have to admit that I was expecting a long, technical fight, but Mix knew what he was doing when he [timed that knee]. Very impressive. Mix is definitely a great opponent.”
Freire is scheduled to face Sergio Pettis for the undisputed bantamweight crown in the Bellator 297 co-main event on June 16 in Chicago. The reigning featherweight king revealed that his weight cut is going better than expected.
"I should be weighing [156 pounds] by Monday, but I reached that weight one week ago. Now it’s just a question of following the plans of my nutritionist, losing [11 pounds] in eight weeks naturally and leaving around [10 or 11 pounds to cut] during fight week. The most important thing is not to have my performance affected by my weight cut process. The way we are doing it, since my fight with [Kleber Koike Erbst] last December, I'm sure I’ll be able to bring the best Patricio Pitbull on June 16.”
While a win over Pettis would likwly set up a future showdown with Mix, who is the interim champion, Freire is only focused on the task in front of him.
"I prefer to face one challenge at a time. My focus now is 100 percent on Pettis,” he said. “I’m training hard and working hard to do a perfect weight cut to make history as the first fighter to win a belt in three different divisions. My original category, where I intend to stay, is [featherweight], but I'm moved by great challenges and after that beautiful win by Mix, he got me excited.
“Depending on what Bellator plans, I’ll be available to face Mix after capturing the bantamweight belt. But one step at a time. My target now is Sergio Pettis.”
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