UNCASVILLE, Conn.– Bellator 249 was tossed a late curveball on Thursday night when co-headliner Patricky Freire was pulled from his battle.
Bellator officials told MMA Junkie that both rivals will still be compensated for their fight.
” Patricky Freire was removed from the card this evening for a health problem unrelated to COVID and/or weight cut,” commission head Mike Mazzulli stated. “For the safety of the fight we felt it was needed to eliminate him. Hes succeeding, but he will not be battling tonight.”
Freire ( 23-9 MMA, 14-7 BMMA) was slated to eliminate Jaleel Willis in the co-feature lightweight bout at Mohegan Sun Arena, but word broke towards the end of the nights initial card that Freire was unclear by the doctor for the Mohegan Tribal Athletic Commission over what was termed a concealed medical concern.
The dropout suggests that a set up heavyweight preliminary bout between Steve Mowry and Shawn Teed will bump up to the main card, which will be headlined by Cris Cyborgs featherweight title defense against Arlene Blencowe.
Mohegan Sun commission head Mike Mazzulli makes a statement on @PatrickyPitbulls elimination from tonights #Bellator 249 co-main occasion vs. Jaleel Willis.
Complete story: https://t.co/ivqZCU0mWb pic.twitter.com/w6pYZlJLC8
— MMA Junkie (@MMAjunkie) October 16, 2020
UPDATE: Freire published about his circumstance on Instagram:
View this post on Instagram
( Texto em português no meio do post) Hi everybody, I know you were all looking forward to see my brother fight, however me and our fitness instructors decided to cancel it after observing he was unwell. He desired to fight and didnt desire to inform us. We gave him the benefit of the doubt, however he didnt get better when we got to the locker room and we cancelled the fight. Hes had this before, but never on battle week or even battle day. Hell go see more doctors and when were sure its under control well talk about his next fight.
( Texto em português no meio do post) Hi everyone, I know you were all looking forward to see my sibling battle, but me and our trainers decided to cancel it after seeing he was unwell. Hes had this before, however never on battle week or even fight day. Hell go see more doctors and when were sure its under control well talk about his next battle.
