Sergio Pettis had a huge 2022 in Bellator as he scored a huge ‘comeback of the year' victory over Kyoji Horiguchi to become the bantamweight champion. He scored a spinning back fist knockout and enters the bantamweight tournament with a huge target on his back.
Bellator's bantamweight tournament will end with the winner getting the belt and a million dollars. Something Sergio Pettis plans on ending up with to wrap up 2022.
“2022 is a brand new year that I’ve got to be focused for,” Pettis told MMA Junkie. “There’s a million dollars at the end of this. There’s defending the belt, which I want to continue to do. I’m not here to have this belt for a season, I’m here to have it for a reason. I want to show that I’m one of the best in this division and I’m one of the best in the world. It’s just a matter of time before I believe in it and before my performances are showing it. It’s my time. My time is coming right now. Everything is shifting, and the way I’m working and the way I’m thinking is just coming altogether.”
The tournament format is a unique one and not all MMA fighters have been able to participate in one. Bellator built its name off tournaments.
“I’m just happy going through a grand prix,” Pettis said. “I’ve never had that in my career at all, so at 28 years old, about to go through a grand prix, have a shot at $1 million, whatever way it goes, it goes. I’m not in control of that. Whatever the universe throws at me, I’m ready to take that on, so if I’ve got to fight a teammate or a fighter that I just fought, I’ll do whatever necessary to get to my goal. I have that written down in my goals to become a millionaire before I’m 30 years old, so I think that’ll definitely be an option in 2022.”
The Bellator bantamweight Grand Prix is expected to be a very fun tournament with the best names at 135. It is not clear who is the favorite to win it with everyone being matched up so evenly.
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