Henry Corrales and Juan Archuleta, two top Bellator featherweights, are ready to go at it at Bellator 238. Both men are looking to get back in the win column after each came up short in the first round of the Bellator Featherweight Grand Prix.
Corrales (17-4 MMA, 5-4 Bellator) saw his five-fight winning streak snapped with a close unanimous decision loss to former bantamweight kingpin Darrion Caldwell. His ran included a signature knockout win over blue-chip prospect Aaron Pico. Archuleta (23-2 MMA, 5-1 Bellator) lost a featherweight title bout against champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire to see his 18-fight win fade away.
The featherweights will throw down on the main card of an event featuring Cris Cyborg‘s Bellator debut as she challenges Julia Budd for the featherweight crown. Corrales likes the fact his scrap with Archuleta comes on a big stage.
“There’s a lot to like about it,” Corrales told MMASucka. “He’s a good fighter. We’re looking forward to this one.”
With Archuleta coming off a title shot, Corrales views the fight as a big opportunity. Unsurprisingly, he feels it will be a tough fight.
“I’m pretty pumped about it,” he said. “It’s a big fight against a high quality opponent.”
Title Picture
Corrales doesn’t know where a win over Archuleta would put him in the featherweight title picture. The tournament is in the midst of its second round. With “Pitbull” defending the title throughout the tournament, the winner of Corrales vs. Archuleta may need a couple of more wins before an opportunity for gold presents itself.
Corrales is solely focused on Archuleta, however. While he’s always looking forward to a fight, he’s eager to get back in there and get the bad taste out of his mouth after the Caldwell bout.
“I just didn’t perform to my optimal self,” he said. “So I’m more excited to get back in there and prove to myself some shit.”
Corrales and his team watched Archuleta’s fight against “Pitbull,” where the Freire brother got the better of Archuleta over 25 minutes. He said there’s “definitely some stuff we can exploit” after watching tape of the title fight.
Bellator 238 goes down this Saturday night from The Forum in Inglewood, CA. The main card, featuring Henry Corrales vs. Juan Archuleta, will air on DAZN at 10 p.m. EST.
