Patricio 'Pitbull' Freire Seeks Ngannou's Support in PFL Battle

Patricio “Pitbull” Freire has called on heavyweight Francis Ngannou to help resolve his contract dispute with the Professional Fighters League (PFL). The 37-year-old Brazilian fighter, who has not competed since March, requested the PFL to release him from his contract last December. He has since heavily criticized the organization on social media especially after PFL announced it would dissolve Bellator in its current form after acquiring the promotion in late 2023.

Pitbull voiced his concerns directly to Ngannou, who recently joined the PFL, in a series of posts on X. He asked, “Hey Francis Ngannou, are you aware of all the absurd things PFL is doing to fighters and putting on the new contracts?” Pitbull also proposed the idea of starting a PFL Fighters Union, pointing out the absence of a union in major MMA promotions like UFC and PFL. However, Ngannou has not responded immediately.

Pitbull a Bellator veteran with titles in two divisions, remains the last fighter to hold the promotion’s featherweight championship. He fought at a PFL event in Belfast where he defeated Jeremy Kennedy to improve his record to 36-7. After the PFL merged with Bellator, the company launched the Bellator Champion Series in 2024 to showcase some of Bellator’s top talent.

In response to Patricio “Pitbull” Freire’s public frustrations, PFL chairman Donn Davis issued a statement to explain why the organization decided to phase out the Bellator brand. Davis emphasized that PFL acquired Bellator to strengthen its roster and stated that moving forward, all events and content would carry the PFL brand. However, he added that PFL would still honor Bellator’s legacy in select title bouts.