The reigning Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull is scheduled to face the 2023 PFL featherweight season victor, Jesus Pinedo. The two will square off at PFL vs. Bellator: Champs on Feb.24 in Saudi Arabia. However, Patricio isn’t sure that he will join PFL’s ranks to partake in promotion’s regular season.
In his interview with the Brazilian podcast Trocação Franca the Bellator mainstay declared that he’s more willing to defend his belt. Especially, when his home promotion will continue to function with its’ Championship Series cards. Additionally, he’s not a fan of some things that PFL is doing.
“I know what’s happening now is something huge, Bellator and PFL have merged, but, as a Bellator fan, Bellator feels different. You go to an arena to watch Bellator, you see 25,000 people, you see a long line of fans entering the arena, you see people screaming. At the PFL, what I saw was a studio. It doesn’t excite me to fight on that format. I don’t know how it’s going to be going forward if they’re taking the know-how from Bellator and doing PFL events the same way. I’m seeing more marketing about it, you can clearly see the difference, but PFL is not what Bellator used to be. They have to show me because I haven’t seen it yet.”
Despite all its’ production values, the PFL looks to him as a smaller show:
“I was invited to go to the PFL, and it has great structure. “I’ve never seen anything like that. The corners had LEDs, something completely futuristic, but in a small venue, like if it was a TV show. I’m not used to that. I want to wait and see what will happen. I’d rather stay with Bellator.”
But most importantly, Patricio Pitbull is not a fan of the point system and regular then playoff format presented by the promotion. For him, it comes down to who’s got the bigger amount of points rather than level of the opposition.
“If you finish someone in the first round, second, third, that’s points. If you win a decision, it’s points. But, let’s say I fight a former world champion and win a three-round war, and someone else knocks out a nobody in the first round, he’s advancing and I’m not. That confuses me. It’s a clear critic I make about the way PFL does the season. To me, that’s bullsh*t. It’s unfair. It doesn’t make any sense to me because you fight a tough opponent and the other guy fought an easy opponent and got the finish, and you don’t advance because of points. It’s sh*t.”
The current 145 lbs title holder is in the late phase of his contract, which will not be complete during this year. There’s also a potential champion clause extension. The Brazilian fighter will wait for potential offers and based on that decide his future. For now he is fond of an offer presented by PFL founder, Donn Davis.
“He looks like a kid with a new toy. “He’s very excited. I like it. I’ve met him once and we spoke for at least an hour, more than I’ve ever spoken with Scott Coker all these years. I’ve always had a friendly relationship with Scott Coker but it was always a two, three-minute conversation., seemed excited, hopeful, with lots of plans and ideas. He really seems like a kid with a new toy, and I like that. He knows he has to operate with two brands, and the challenge is different.”
Only time will tell if Patricio Pitbull will enter the next phase of his career, and what destination will choose. But surely, he will have options to pick from.
