Bellator's Patricio Pitbull reveals what forced him to go public against PFL, eyes Ilia Topuria and three other fighters after potential UFC signing

Patricio Pitbull Freire has opened up about what pushed him into going public with his criticism of the PFL and PFL-owned Bellator. Additionally, the ex-Bellator lightweight champion and current Bellator featherweight kingpin named Ilia Topuria and three others he'd like to face after possibly joining the UFC.

Pitbull last defended his Bellator featherweight title via third-round TKO against Jeremy Kennedy at Bellator Champions Series 1 in March 2024. It marked his first, and thus far only, fight under the PFL-owned Bellator.

The 37-year-old is one of several current and former Bellator stars -- including Cris Cyborg, Douglas Lima, Gegard Mousasi, and others -- who've accused PFL of not honoring Bellator fighters' pre-existing contracts after the PFL's 2023 acquisition of Bellator.

During an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Patricio Pitbull seemingly asserted that the Bellator he "helped build is no more." With the help of his manager-cum-translator, Matheus Aquino, the three-time Bellator featherweight champion stated:

"The last straw was them canceling my fight. They had me wait until December 31st and let me know with a few weeks' notice that my fight was canceled. And I actually found out the change of opponents on the internet. Then they said there would be no event. And there are a few other things that I believe we're going to address during this conversation. Things just kept piling up. And I just had, enough is enough."

When asked who he was supposed to fight on Dec. 31, Patricio Pitbull alluded to some expected Bellator events being shelved by the PFL. He highlighted that he was to fight RIZIN featherweight champion Chihiro Suzuki, who knocked him out in 2023, in a rematch.

Also, his brother, Patricky Pitbull Freire was expected to fight Kleber Koike on the same card. Expounding upon it, Patricio said the following via his translator:

"I was supposed to fight [Chihiro] Suzuki in a rematch. Then it was announced that he would fight Kleber Koike. And we were waiting to find out that Patricky [Pitbull] would fight Kleber, so we both could fight on the same event. And then they [Suzuki and Koike] are fighting each other. So when I went to Bellator, they told me I will be fighting Aaron Pico. After that, they canceled the show."

Watch Pitbull's assessment below:

Watch Patricio Pitbull's interview below (0:10):

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Patricio Pitbull Freire eyes fight with Ilia Topuria, requests Donn Davis for PFL release

Furthermore, Patricio Pitbull named UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria and and other 145-pound divisional elites like Alexander Volkanovski, Diego Lopes, and current lightweight Max Holloway, as potential opponents in the UFC:

"My desire is just to walk away. I wanna fight different guys. I wanna fight Max Holloway, [Ilia] Topuria, Diego Lopes, [Alexander] Volkanovski; all those guys that people said they wanted to see me fight against. What I had to in Bellator I already did. So I just want to move on." [10:30-minute mark of the aforementioned video]

Pitbull underscored that he has one fight left on his contract but is now uninterested in fighting for the Bellator or PFL. Explaining that legacy takes precedence over money for him, the 37-year-old reaffirmed that he'd like to compete in the UFC before age catches up.

Addressing PFL founder Donn Davis, he asserted:

"Please, Donn Davis, release me."