Having waited all of 2020 to make his return to the Bellator cage, an unfortunate health situation has prevented Patricky “Pitbull” Freire from fighting on tonight’s Bellator 249 card.
MMA Junkie’s Nolan King was first to report that Pitbull’s co-main event vs. former LFA champion Jaleel Willis has been nixed. Freire was not cleared by the commission at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut, and it’s since been revealed by MMA Fighting’s Guilherme Cruz that Patricky is unfortunately suffering from labyrinthitis, which is an inner ear disorder.
According to King, both Freire and Willis have been compensated for their cancelled matchup. The new co-main event is Leandro Higo taking on Ricky Bandejas in a catchweight fight, while Steve Mowry vs. Shawn Teed moves up to the main card from the prelims.
The Bellator 249 main event is a women’s featherweight title bout between champion Cris Cyborg and Arlene Blencowe. Here’s the retooled lineup for the main card:
Cris Cyborg vs. Arlene Blencowe
Ricky Bandejas vs. Leandro Higo
Steve Mowry vs. Shawn Teed
Saad Awad vs. Mandel Nallo
You can follow our Bellator 249 main card play-by-play here.
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