The Bellator lightweight title is at stake in Tacoma next month.
It’s been awhile since a major MMA card landed in the state of Washington, but that drought will finally end on July 22nd.
Bellator MMA announced on Tuesday that reigning lightweight champion Patricky ‘Pitbull’ Freire will put his belt on the line against challenger Sidney Outlaw at the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, which is the next major city south of Seattle. Tickets for the promotion’s first ever trip to Washington will go on sale Saturday, June 18th.
Freire (24-10) won Bellator’s 155 lbs championship with a second-round TKO over Peter Queally last November in Dublin, Ireland. The fight was a rematch of their non-title bout, which Queally won by cut stoppage TKO. When Patricky’s brother Patricio vacated the crown to focus on 145 lbs, that opened the door for both men to fight for the title, and at long last Patricky was able to reach the summit.
Outlaw (16-4) is 3-1 in Bellator, with the lone defeat coming by KO to former champion Michael Chandler. His last two performances have resulted in a split decision over Adam Piccolotti and a rear-naked choke finish of UFC veteran Myles Jury. He also holds wins over Roger Huerta and PFL 2021 champion Raush Manfio.
Other fights announced for Bellator 283 include a co-main event between former welterweight champion Douglas Lima and Jason Jackson, as well as lightweight prospect Usman Nurmagomedov against Chris Gonzalez. The featured prelim pits Adam Piccolotti against Tofiq Musayev in a very interesting lightweight tussle.
The main card airs live on Showtime at 10 PM ET/7 PM PT, with prelims at 7 PM ET/4 PM PT streamed online on YouTube.