In an interview today with Ariel Helwani, Bellator President Scott Coker drops bombs about upcoming news for the organization. And it all kicks off in just one month.

First he confirmed that former champ-champ Patricio Freire, who recently lost his featherweight title to A.J. McKee; will be vacating his lightweight title. He and his older brother had teased they’d fight for the 155 strap, but that was never going to happen. They had a deal in place with their parents like the Klitschko brothers, never to fight one another, for real. So, “Pitbull” goes from double champ to no champ.

Patricio Pitbull as double champion

He never got a chance to defend the lightweight title, being the featherweight champion in the grand prix. Coker’s confirmation of the news comes after the 34-year old Brazilian tweeted out the following:

And with that, comes the official Coker news bomb. It’s now Patricky Freire getting his chance at glory. The vacated title will be up for grabs at Bellator 270, when he faces SBG Ireland product Peter Queally.

Patricky Pitbull vs Peter Queally for the 155 belt

Scott Coker Drops Bombs, There’s More

And the news didn’t end there. Coker also said that starting in January 2022, all Bellator non-title main events will move to five-rounds. That comes on the heels of two fights, that left everyone wanting more.

Yoel Romero versus Phil Davis, and then Douglas Lima against Michael Venom Page. Romero, the newest acquisition of the company for some reason didn’t know his fight wasn’t five rounds and was visibly angered before Michael C. Williams read the score cards.

Barring a massive comeback or a flash finish however, the controlling grappling of “Mr. Wonderful” would have continued. Lima and MVP though really put the chatter about this in the forefront though. Anyone watching that fight could have argued 29-28 either way. And post fight Page himself was saying he’d be up for the move. And now Coker himself sees it that way too.

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Cyclone

Cyclone, considers himself the Chris "MadDog" Russo of combat sports. He got the nickname in 1984 after riding the roller coaster multiple times, and then made it his professional name. He's been officially covering combat sports since January 2017 when Chael Sonnen fought Tito Ortiz. Cyclone's been lucky enough to do some regional mma play-by-play. Loving to entertain since childhood, he continues to round out his schedule as a comedian, actor, producer, and show host. Away from the "bright lights", he enjoys cooking, fishing, and gambling. A lover of animals Cyclone hopes to one day return to working at an animal shelter.

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