Having come unstuck in his promotional debut, not many were expecting this fight for Benson Henderson.
On Saturday night, during Bellator 158, company officials announced that the former UFC lightweight champion will be taking on former Bellator featherweight champion Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire.
The bout will be contested at lightweight in the main event of Bellator 160 next month.
Henderson left the UFC earlier this year after becoming a free agent but his first appearance in the Bellator cage was not a successful one as he dropped a unanimous decision to Bellator welterweight champion Andrey Koreshkov in April.
In order to set up a crack at the lightweight strap, he will first have to get past the younger of the ‘Pitbull’ brothers in Anaheim, California on August 26.
Lightweight champion Michael Chandler will have a keen eye on proceedings as he has twice beaten Patricky Freire, the older of the ‘Pitbull’ brothers, and engaged in trash talk with Patricio after the most recent fight.
Michael Chandler and Patricio Pitbull post fight trash talk ? #DYNAMITE2 https://t.co/o82nX7ysPa
— MMA GIFS (@mma_gifs_) June 25, 2016
A win for young ‘Pitbull’ will set up a grudge match for the 155 lbs title so regardless of the victor at Bellator 160, Chandler will have an intriguing title defence on the horizon.
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