Tag: Kurt Pellegrino

Bellator 59 Recap: Dantas wins Bantamweight Tournament, Heavyweight Finale No Contest

Eric Prindle vs. Thiago Santos, fight ending low blow comes at the 2:07 mark. All videos in this post props to IronForgesIron.com

Coming fresh off of Last week’s action packed show, Bellator looked to keep building momentum last night in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The good news for Bellator is that, for the most part, the card delivered exciting, entertaining fights. The bad news for Bellator? That above video not only happened, but was supposed to be this season’s heavyweight tournament finale.

Rather, this season’s heavyweight tournament ends with a controversial no contest. On one hand, it would be anti-climatic to name a number one contender by disqualification from to an illegal kick. On the other hand, if Santos was aiming for the inside of Prindle’s thigh, it sure didn’t look like it. Prindle will meet Santos again to determine a contender for Cole Konrad, although a date for their next meeting hasn’t been announced yet.


Eric Prindle vs. Thiago Santos, fight ending low blow comes at the 2:07 mark. All videos in this post props to IronForgesIron.com

Coming fresh off of Last week’s action packed show, Bellator looked to keep building momentum last night in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The good news for Bellator is that, for the most part, the card delivered exciting, entertaining fights. The bad news for Bellator? That above video not only happened, but was supposed to be this season’s heavyweight tournament finale.

Rather, this season’s heavyweight tournament ends with a controversial no contest. On one hand, it would be anti-climatic to name a number one contender by disqualification from to an illegal kick. On the other hand, if Santos was aiming for the inside of Prindle’s thigh, it sure didn’t look like it. Prindle will meet Santos again to determine a contender for Cole Konrad, although a date for their next meeting hasn’t been announced yet.

Fortunately for Bellator, this season’s bantamweight tournament ended with a much more exciting, much less controversial fight. While Alexis Vila managed to push the pace and earn takedowns in the first round, twenty two year old Brazilian prospect Eduardo Dantas came back to take the unanimous decision victory. Dantas utilized his reach advantage to keep Vila at bay and threatened with numerous submission attempts in the second and third rounds. Dantas will meet bantamweight champion Zach Makovsky for a title shot next season.

Also of note, New Jersey native Kurt Pellegrino was knocked out in just fifty seconds by Patricky “Pitbull” Freire. Pellegrino got caught early, and appeared to be working for a takedown while the fight was called. The Atlantic City crowd began chanting bullshit, but after the fight, Kurt announced that he had lost “fair and square” and that this fight would be his last. At thirty two years old, coming off of a loss to a promising lightweight prospect, it’s hard not to believe Pellegrino when he says that he’s retiring for real this time. Thanks for the memories, Batman.

 

Full results, courtesy of MMA Junkie:

OFFICIAL MAIN CARD RESULTS

Eric Prindle vs. Thiago Santos declared a no contest (unintentional foul) – Round 1, 1:24  
Patricky “Pitbull” Freire def. Kurt Pellegrino via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 0:50
Eduardo Dantas def. Alexis Vila via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Marcin Held def. Phillipe Nover via split decision (29-28 x2, 28-29)

OFFICIAL PRELIMINARY CARD RESULTS

Karl Amoussou def. Jesus Martinez via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 2:20
LeVon Maynard def. Chris Wing via unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 30-26)
Lucas Pimenta def. Doug Gordon via knockout (elbows) – Round 1, 0:40
Scott Heckman def. Brylan Van Artsdalen via submission (standing guillotine choke) – Round 1, 1:38
Gregory Milliard def. Brandon Saling via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)

Kurt Pellegrino Loses, Retires at Bellator 59

Filed under: Bellator, NewsThe final Bellator Fighting Championships event of 2011 also featured the final fight of Kurt Pellegrino’s career.

Fighting in front of his home-state fans in New Jersey, Pellegrino was defeated in just 50 seconds by Patrick…

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The final Bellator Fighting Championships event of 2011 also featured the final fight of Kurt Pellegrino‘s career.

Fighting in front of his home-state fans in New Jersey, Pellegrino was defeated in just 50 seconds by Patricky “Pitbull” Freire, and he said afterward that he won’t fight again.

“I started my career in Atlantic City and I wanted to end it in Atlantic City as well,” Pellegrino told the fans at Caesar’s Atlantic City afterward. “I lost fair and square. I love you all so much. This is the last time you’ll ever see me fight again.”

Pellegrino telling the fans (many of whom were his friends and family) that he had lost fair and square seemed to quell their anger at an apparent fast stoppage in his loss to Pitbull. Although Pitbull leveled Pellegrino with a left-right combination and then jumped on top and hit him with several punches on the ground, Pellegrino did still appear to be intelligently defending himself at the time of the stoppage, and the fans loudly booed the outcome.

A UFC veteran who went 7-5 inside the Octagon, Pellegrino left the UFC on a two-fight losing streak in May, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family. It was a surprise when he returned to MMA to fight for Bellator, but it’s not a surprise that he’s now saying he’s done fighting at the age of 32.

 

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UFC Vet Kurt Pellegrino Insists Retirement ‘the Right Choice’

Filed under: UFCKurt Pellegrino surprised many when he announced last week on his website that he was stepping away from MMA, effectively retiring as a fighter. But to those closest to him, it likely didn’t come as a surprise at all.

“I’ve been thinki…

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Kurt Pellegrino surprised many when he announced last week on his website that he was stepping away from MMA, effectively retiring as a fighter. But to those closest to him, it likely didn’t come as a surprise at all.

“I’ve been thinking about retirement since (fighting) Josh Neer (at UFC 101 in August 2009),” Pellegrino told host Ariel Helwani on Monday’s edition of “The MMA Hour.” “I’ve been talking to my wife about it since then, anyway. When it was time to do it, I just said, ‘Do it now.'”

Pellegrino said he wrote the post on his site, published it, and tried to not look back.

“I wrote this thing all out and pressed send,” Pellegrino recalled. “I left my house and drove around for a bit. That was how I dealt with it, because it was a hard thing to do. Do I want to fight again? Right now, I kind of don’t.”

His initial statement about stepping away left room to return. But Pellegrino (16-6, 7-5 UFC) said Monday it’s not likely, and cited missing key moments with his family during his fighting career as a key reason he’s liable to keep the gloves on a hanger.

“I’m really happy where I’m at right now in my life. I have no regrets with my decision,” Pellegrino said. “Being away, I missed so much of my daughter’s life when she was a girl, when she was a baby … you miss those little things. I probably fed my daughter with a bottle I don’t think even 20 times. I felt like a really bad father. A lot of guys that fight I think care a lot more about traveling and being away from their families than being with them. And I’d rather be with them.”

Pellegrino and his wife also have a new baby boy to go with their daughter.

Pellegrino was on a four-fight winning streak in the UFC before dropping a unanimous decision to George Sotiropoulos at UFC 116 last July. He followed that with a split decision loss to Gleison Tibau in his home state of New Jersey at UFC 128 in March. During his four-fight streak, he won UFC bonuses for a Fight of the Night against Thiago Tavares at UFC 88 and Submission of the Night against Fabricio Camoes at UFC 111 – and in that fight, he also injured his knee. But he trained anyway, refusing to pull out of his fight with Sotiropoulos just over three months later.

But for that fight, Pellegrino said the doubts about his future in the sport began to enter his mind. “In my mind, I didn’t care if I got my hand raised,” Pellegrino said. “When that started happening, I didn’t want to be a part of the sport anymore. If I was 100 percent Kurt, I would’ve been able to beat (Sotiropoulos).”

Pellegrino said the UFC, specifically matchmaker Joe Silva, understood his position and released him from his contract. He also said Silva sensed it might be coming at his last fight against Tibau, and Pellegrino let his wife in on it at that time, too.

“Talking with Joe, he said, ‘I don’t see the fire in you, buddy,'” Pellegrino recalled. “My wife, I told her before the weigh-ins, ‘I don’t wanna do this no more.’ Thirteen years I’ve been with my wife, and it’s been 13 years of Kurt Pellegrino. It’s time to be a part of their lives a little bit, too.”

For now, Pellegrino said he will stay plenty busy with the school he runs, where he teaches all the jiu-jitsu classes. And he said every Tuesday and Thursday, he’ll be home to be with his kids while his wife runs the spray-tan business he purchased for her.

But regrets? Pellegrino said he won’t have any – yet.

“I told my father and wife when I was 30, I’d never, ever compete again,” said Pellegrino, who is now 32. “I’ve been wrestling since I was 5 years old. I’ve been cutting weight since I was 12. I got to (fight in the UFC) 12 times and win Fight of the Night honors. … Most (fighters) live and die just for the life – I could care less.

“This is the right choice for my life right now. I kind of need to go find myself a little bit.”

 

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The MMA Hour With Renzo Gracie in Studio, Pellegrino, Roufus, Herrig, Rosa, Young

Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive, VideosThe MMA Hour returns on Monday, and five personalities from around the mixed martial arts world will be stopping by.

* MMA legend Renzo Gracie will visit our studio for the very first time.

* Kurt Pellegrin…

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The MMA Hour returns on Monday, and five personalities from around the mixed martial arts world will be stopping by.

* MMA legend Renzo Gracie will visit our studio for the very first time.

* Kurt Pellegrino will discuss why he is temporarily walking away from the sport.

* Female MMA fighter Felice Herrig will discuss her recent win and what’s next for her.

* UFC newcomer Jason Young will discuss his UFC 131 bout against Dustin Poirier.

* MMA trainer Duke Roufus will talk about Anthony Pettis and Danny Downes’ losses at the TUF 13 Finale.

* And Aaron Rosa, another UFC rookie, will discuss his UFC 131 bout against Joey Beltran.

Of course, we’ll be taking your calls. Give us a shout at: 212-254-0193 or 212-254-0237.

*** You can now stream the show live on your iPhone or iPad by clicking here.

Watch the show live below beginning at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT. Subscribe to The MMA Hour on iTunes: audio feed here; video feed here. Download previous episodes here. Listen to the show via Stitcher here.

(Editor’s note: The show is now over, but the video should be back Tuesday.)

 

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Video: Kurt Pellegrino Gets Serious for a Moment, Explains His Decision to Walk Away

(Props: MMADiehards)

You may know Kurt Pellegrino as the wacky-ass UFC fighter who will fart and shake-weight for your amusement, but listening to his new interview for MMA Diehards, it’s clear that his decision to walk away from the sport was something he took very seriously. As he explains, he didn’t want to be away from his new son in the same way that he missed spending time with his daughter due to the demands of training, and retirement has been on his mind since his fight against Rob Emerson back in February 2009. He also claims that he would still be retiring even if he won his last fight against Gleison Tibau. As he says at the 2:44 mark:


(Props: MMADiehards)

You may know Kurt Pellegrino as the wacky-ass UFC fighter who will fart and shake-weight for your amusement, but listening to his new interview for MMA Diehards, it’s clear that his decision to walk away from the sport was something he took very seriously. As he explains, he didn’t want to be away from his new son in the same way that he missed spending time with his daughter due to the demands of training, and retirement has been on his mind since his fight against Rob Emerson back in February 2009. He also claims that he would still be retiring even if he won his last fight against Gleison Tibau. As he says at the 2:44 mark:

“I did not want to fight no more when I fought George Sotiropoulos. I had three leg surgeries. I shattered my hand. I got kicked in the face by Alberto Crane to where the right side of my brain hurt for a month…I have a hard time boxing because my hands hurt. And then when I fought George, I didn’t think I wanted to do it no more. Even when I fought Fabricio [Camoes], I just didn’t want to do it. It’s not fair for me or the UFC for me to be in their organization and not give a shit. So I think the most noble thing to do is to step away and give someone else an opportunity.”

Good luck, Batman, and thanks for the memories.

UFC’s Kurt Pellegrino Steps Away from MMA

After two defeats by decision, Ultimate Fighting Championship 155-pound fighter Kurt “Batman” Pellegrino has decided take time off from mixed martial arts and dedicate more time to his family. According to the 32-year-old’s website, K…

After two defeats by decision, Ultimate Fighting Championship 155-pound fighter Kurt “Batman” Pellegrino has decided take time off from mixed martial arts and dedicate more time to his family.

According to the 32-year-old’s website, KurtPellegrino.com, the New Jersey-born fighter feels he needs time off to rethink his future.

“Over my most recent fights, I have come to the realization that at this point, I no longer can, nor want to, make fighting my first priority,” he said. “Never in my career have I lost two fights in a row, and my last fight’s decision, in particular, was especially hard for me to swallow, to be honest.”

Prior to his two recent losses, Batman still considered stepping away from fighting, even while on a 19-month, undefeated streak in the world’s largest MMA promotion.

“Even last year when I was on a four-fight win streak, I still was questioning myself. This has made me reconsider what my next step will be competitively,” explains the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. “I have spoken at length with (UFC matchmaker) Joe Silva about my decision and have decided not to renew my contract with the UFC. I want to take the time to regroup, refocus, and rethink what it is that I want to do going forward.”

During his current hiatus from fighting in the octagon, Pellegrino is still willing to learn and better himself as a martial artist, and is considering competing in non-MMA sports.

“I want to concentrate on my BJJ game and improve it.  I want to work on my boxing game and improve that also,” claims the lightweight fighter.  “I’d like to compete in some grappling tournaments again like the old days, and maybe even try my hand at a pro boxing fight.  I want to have fun training again, bottom line.”

“Most importantly I want to spend more time with my family. My daughter is four years old and I can’t tell you how much of her life I’ve missed dedicating my life to training for fights.”

Whether Kurt Pellegrino decides to return or retire from MMA, he’s definitely built a solid career with a current record of 16-6, dating back to 2002, with notable wins over Mac Danzig, Thiago Tavares and Josh Neer.

Roland Riso is a contributing writer for Bleacher Report.  All quotes were obtained from KurtPellegrino.com.

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