Latest news with #Freire
USA Today
21-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Patricio Freire shares mixed feelings with first UFC win, wants Aaron Pico next
Patricio Freire had mixed feelings after winning his first UFC fight. NEW ORLEANS – Patricio Freire is conflicted over his first UFC victory. The former Bellator champion stepped into the octagon for the second time at UFC 318 to face Dan Ige, and came out with a unanimous decision nod. Despite getting his first win under the UFC banner, Freire (37-8 MMA, 1-1 UFC) believes he could have done more to prove his skills against Ige (19-10 MMA, 11-9 UFC). "I'm happy, but I know I can do better," Freire told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. "Much respect to my opponent. Dan Ige's a very tough guy. ... He's very good, but I'm better. I proved it today." "Pitbull" made his UFC debut against former interim titleholder Yair Rodriguez at UFC 314, losing by unanimous decision. The scorecards were in his favor this time around, and while he was glad to get his hand raised, he wasn't satisfied with his performance. "I'm not very happy now – because I know I can do better," Freire said. "I was with a little pressure on my shoulder. I came from a defeat. Of course, I lost the April fight against Yair. He's very good. He was a former champion, but I know I'm better than these guys." Freire hopes to make a quick turnaround to face a fellow former Bellator competitor waiting to make his debut, Aaron Pico, who was scheduled to face Movsar Evloev at UFC on ABC 9 on July 26. "He's ready, I'm ready," Freire said. "I cut my nose now, but two days, I'm good. ... He can make his debut in the UFC against me. Now I'm a (UFC) veteran."
USA Today
20-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC 318 results: Patricio Freire notches first win in promotion with decision over Dan Ige
Patricio Freire now has a win under the UFC banner after getting past Dan Ige. Freire (37-8 MMA, 1-1 UFC), one of best champions from the Bellator era, won his sophomore appearance in the UFC by winning a unanimous decision (29-29, 29-28, 29-28) over Ige (19-10 MMA, 11-9 UFC). The featherweight bout served as the second fight on the pay-per-view main card of UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. The fight started off at a methodical pace as neither fighter rushed the feeling-out process. "Pitbull" secured a nice takedown sequence midway through the round as the first big action of the fight. Ige did well to prevent damage and scrambled to his feet. Freire leaped forward with a knee for a nice connection, but the crowd wasn't very happy with the overall offering in the opening frame. Round 2 started off at a similar slow pace, but Ige offered a good combination. The boo birds continued to chirp as the fight reached the midpoint of the round. That's when things changed out of nowhere. "Pitbull" cracked Ige with a hard left hand, dropping him to a knee. The swarm from Freire was on, but Ige survived the moment. Although the finish was no longer in play, Freire kept the pressure on with a nice takedown with some ground and pound before heading back to the stools. Needing to change the fight in a hurry, Ige cracked Freire with a hard head kick early in the final round. Freire held on to avoid follow-ups, though. A low kick from Ige paused the fight momentarily, but on the restart, Freire kept Ige busy with takedown attempts, and caught a kick to bring the fight to the ground until the final horn. All three judges scored the first two rounds for Freire and the final for Ige. With the win, Freire successfully rebounds from his UFC debut loss to former interim champ Yair Rodriguez at UFC 314 in April. "Pitbull" entered the UFC on he heels of a Bellator title defense against Jeremy Kennedy last March. On the other side, Ige fails to keep momentum going after a third-round finish of Sean Woodson, which also took place at UFC 314. Up-to-the-minute UFC 318 results
USA Today
16-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Patricio Freire identified calmness as debut mistake but vows to be violent at UFC 318
NEW ORLEANS – Patricio Freire's UFC debut played out like someone slowly letting the air out of a balloon. There's no one who recognizes that more than "Pitbull" himself. The fatal mistake wasn't nerves or jitters, no. It was quite the opposite. Freire (36-8 MMA, 0-1 UFC) said his UFC 314 loss to Yair Rodriguez was the result of being too calm. "The problem was that I was very calm," Freire told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. "That was my mistake. (I had) too much experience. Ten years fighting for five rounds, 25 minutes. I saw everything in the cage. I was calm and relaxed. That was my mistake. ... For sure, (this one) will be a violent fight." Almost immediately after the loss in March, Freire launched a social media campaign for a fight vs. Dan Ige (19-9 MMA, 11-8 UFC). It wasn't long before the promotion got on board with the idea and booked the two to fight Saturday at Smoothie King Center. "Yeah, it makes sense," Freire said. "He's a tough guy. He's the division's gatekeeper. He separates the good from the great. He's going to kick down that door. ... I will be the first to knock him out or submit him." Freire, 38, said he's focused solely on Ige. But he couldn't help but notice the addition of another former Bellator star, Aaron Pico, to the UFC roster. Despite the two long being aligned to clash in the now-defunct promotion, they never did. With Pico (13-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) in need of a new opponent, Freire thinks that matchup could be next. "My focus now is to beat (Ige), but after that: Aaron Pico," Freire said. "... We were in Bellator for a long time. I was the champion, but he couldn't get to the belt. Now we can fight. Next week? Yeah. I'm ready, always ready."
USA Today
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
UFC 318: Patricio Freire gets sophomore assignment vs. Dan Ige in New Orleans
UFC 318: Patricio Freire gets sophomore assignment vs. Dan Ige in New Orleans Ask and you shall receive. It looks like the UFC heard Dan Ige's recent callout and obliged, booking him against former two-division Bellator champion Patricio Freire for UFC 318 – a pay-per-view event that's set to go down July 19 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. MMA Junkie confirmed the news with two sources following a report from Super Lutas on Tuesday. Both Ige (19-9 MMA, 11-8 UFC) and Freire (36-8 MMA, 0-1 UFC) fought at UFC 314 in April in different bouts. Ige stopped fellow veteran Sean Woodson, while Freire lost his UFC debut in a unanimous decision against Yair Rodriguez. With the victory, Ige was able to snap a two-fight losing skid that had him dropping decisions against top contenders Diego Lopes and Lerone Murphy. On the other hand, Freire, who's arguably the most successful fighter in Bellator history, fell into a 1-3 rut. Prior to debuting for the UFC, "Pitbull" stopped Jeremy Kennedy and lost to Chihiro Suzuki and Sergio Pettis. Current UFC 318 lineup
Rhyl Journal
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Rhyl Journal
Record breeze-up buy Celestial King all set for Ascot debut
Bloodstock agent Alex Elliott, on behalf of Amo Racing supremo Kia Joorabchian, saw off Godolphin representatives in the sales ring to acquire the son of Havana Grey for a record fee for a lot sold at the Tattersalls Craven Breeze Up Sale last month. Now the Amo team are preparing to do battle with the boys in blue on the racecourse, as their high-value asset faces off against Charlie Appleby's Newmarket winner Military Code in the Peroni Nastro Azzurro 0.0% Novice Stakes. Freire said: 'He looked very impressive at the breeze-ups and he showed lots of speed there. It hasn't slowed him down coming to us and it's brought him forward. 'Surprisingly he was a lot greener than we expected, but we see that as a good thing as it leaves us plenty to work on still and he's there now and he will run on Saturday with a great chance I think. 'Obviously there are some good horses declared like the Godolphin horse that has won at Newmarket and his experience could play a part but I expect Celestial King to run really well, he has plenty of ability.' As with all two-year-olds at this stage of the season, an eventual trip to Royal Ascot is very much central to the agenda, with the Freemason Lodge handler keen to give his charge an earlier sighter of the famous Berkshire venue ahead of the summer showpiece in June. 'There is nothing better than to have had a run at Ascot just to show him the place and so he will have been around the track,' continued Freire. 'We will see what the outcome of the weekend is and work with that. We would probably like to have another run before Royal Ascot but this is definitely a nice starting point.'
