Patricio “Pitbull” Freire’s UFC debut didn’t go quite as planned, as he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Yair Rodriguez at UFC 314.
After a long stint away from competition and a dormant run in the PFL, many believed Pitbull would step into the Octagon reenergized. But the performance didn’t match expectations. Rodriguez outclassed the former Bellator champion, leaving fans and analysts wondering about Pitbull’s UFC future and whether he has what it takes to hang with the top featherweights.
Despite the setback, Pitbull stayed positive and issued a statement on social media, showing no signs of backing down.
“Congratulations to @panteraufc, we’ll see each other again. I’m injury-free and ready to go at any time @ufc. Thank you to all the fans I’ll make you all proud, you can count on that. #UFC314”
For Pitbull, the pressure is now on to prove that he can bounce back after a rocky debut. But while his performance left questions, the rest of the UFC 314 card delivered fireworks, and a few fighters walked away with well-deserved bonuses.
Paddy Pimblett, who stunned fans with a third-round TKO victory over Michael Chandler, was among those who earned a $50,000 bonus for Fight of the Night. Joining him were Jean Silva, who submitted Bryce Mitchell with a slick ninja choke, and co-main event stars Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes, who went to war in a five-round decision. The fight card includes:
Main Card
Alexander Volkanovski def. Diego Lopes via unanimous decision
Paddy Pimblett def. Michael Chandler via round-three TKO
Yair Rodriguez def. Patricio Pitbull via unanimous decision
Jean Silva def. Bryce Mitchell via round-two submission (ninja choke)
Dominick Reyes def. Nikita Krylov via round-one KO
Preliminary Card
Dan Ige def. Sean Woodson via round-three TKO
Virna Jandiroba def. Yan Xiaonan via unanimous decision
Chase Hooper def. Jim Miller via unanimous decision
Julian Erosa def. Darren Elkins via round one TKO
Michal Oleksiejczuk def. Sedriques Dumas via round one TKO
Sumudaerji def. Mitch Raposo via split decision
Marco Tulio def. Tresean Gore via round-two TKO
Nora Cornolle def. Hailey Cowan via round two submission (rear-naked choke)
