Arguably the biggest fight in Bellator MMA history finally has a date. Patricio Pitbull will defend his featherweight championship against AJ McKee in the finals of the Featherweight World Grand Prix on July 31 in the main event of Bellator 263 from The Forum in Inglewood, California.
The fight, which will air live on Showtime, could well determine the top featherweight in the world, not just in the Bellator cage.
Pitbull is currently riding a seven-fight winning streak during which he regained the featherweight title, won the lightweight belt and won three fights in the Grand Prix tournament. In the tournament, Pitbull scored a decision win over Juan Archuleta, knocked out Pedro Carvalho and submitted Emmanuel Sanchez, showcasing his wide range of skills.
McKee was one of Bellator's top prospects, fighting ever bout of his career in the promotion while slowly improving and upping his level of competition. His road to the finals included an eight second knockout of Georgi Karakhanyan, a third round submission of Derek Campos and one of the best submissions of 2020 with a neck crank victory over Darrion Caldwell.
The pair will top the first Bellator fight card in the United States outside of the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, since the onset of the COVD-19 pandemic. The event is expected to be open to a full capacity crowd in California.
