Bellator 123 has the potential to be a surprise to the mixed martial arts world. While the entire event may not be as strong as the UFC Fight Night 50 card that will be going on down the road at the same time, but the main event is still a captivating contest. With the organization’s featherweight title on the line, Pat Curran and Patricio “Pitbull” Freire are finally meeting for the second time. And based on their first fight, and everything that has happened in the interim, fans can expect an exciting contest that will either be competitive for 25 minutes or end with an extremely violent finish.
When Curran and Freire met in January of 2013 at Bellator 85, the two competitors had a back and forth fight, but at the end of the night, Curran was able to get his hand raised via a split decision. This would be only the second loss of the Brazilian’s MMA career, the first of which was a split decision loss to Joe Warren in the 2010 featherweight tournament.
Since that controversial night, both athletes have gone on separate paths. Curran has struggled at points, as he was soundly defeated by Daniel Straus at Bellator 106. And even though he was able to get the belt back at Bellator 112, he was still dominated for much of that fight as well.
Freire, on the other hand, has doled out domination in Bellator’s circular cage. In his four contests since that defeat, he has finished three opponents by some form of knockout. While doing so, he has kept a stone face of intensity during his bouts that is almost eerie to watch.
As to the fight itself, Curran and Freire are stylistically the perfect match for each other. While both of them have foundations built on the grappling arts — Curran with wrestling and Freire with BJJ — they tend to use their striking more often in the cage. Curran’s boxing has been key in his success, as he lands combinations well, which allows him to transition into his wrestling. Freire, on the other hand, tends to look for counters and one-shot power blows to inflict damage on his opponents. That style may have cost him the first bout, but lately he has looked more comfortable throwing combinations with power, which makes him an even more dangerous opponent. This combination of fighters could come together to create a compelling back and forth battle or a highlight-reel moment will live on for years to come.
Nearly three years ago, Bellator and the UFC held events on the same night. What occurred were two of the best fights in recent MMA history. Eddie Alvarez and Michael Chandler put on a show in Bellator, only to be followed up by Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio Rua in the UFC. There is the potential for a similar situation this coming Friday. However, the main event bout between Pat Curran and Patricio Freire at Bellator 123 will set a high bar that Ronaldo Souza vs. Gegard Mousasi at UFC Fight Night 50 will have trouble clearing later that night.
• Pat Curran vs. Patricio Freire (FW Championship)
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Bellator 123 takes place on September 5, 2014 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
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This fight, and more specifically, Freire's improved performance, exeeded my expectations and imo the Pitbull/Curran rivalry along with Strauss has surpassed the Bellator LWs as their best. Very impressed by Patricio's improved head movement.