Sergio Pettis put on a fantastic performance against Ricky Bandejas at Bellator 242, however, the bantamweight still sees room for improvement in his craft.
The Milwaukee native defeated Bandejas by unanimous decision at the first Bellator card since lockdown. Pettis out-wrestled and out-struck his opponent for the full 15 minutes, in what was a very impressive display for the contender. Although he defeated the highly-rated American Top Team prospect comfortably, he realised that if he is going to become a star and a champion in the promotion, he will need to start finishing fights. Speaking to reporters post-fight at Bellator 242, he had this to say;
“I’m critical of my own performance. Obviously I want to go out there and start finishing people more and more. Ricky was tough, so I had to play a smarter game plan. I went out there and did what I had to do, but there’s more to come. …
“He got me with a nice little takedown, scored some points, got on top. I didn’t get back up to my feet as quick as I wanted to. I didn’t defend the takedown the way I wanted to, but it was just a fight that I had to go out there and react.”
Such self-awareness is a fantastic trait to have, and we can see "The Phenom" quickly climbing the ranks and become a mainstay in the Bellator 135lb division if he keeps his current mindset.
Current SBG stand-out, James Gallagher, expressed his desire to fight the winner of the main event. Pettis, however, feels the Irishman will have to climb the ranks further if he wants to fight the 20-5 mixed martial artist.
“I think it was just another good win on my resume. I beat a tough Ricky Bandejas. I showed Gallagher that’s how you do it, though. That’s how you defend yourself. Those punches and those kicks, if you learn defense, you can block that shit.”
“He’s got to work his way up to get me,” Pettis said. “He’s got a couple more wins under his belt and beat some notable guys. If he can beat Ricky Bandejas then he deserves to fight me, no matter how many followers you got on Instagram.”
Regardless of his modest post-fight assessment, you would think he will have close eyes on the potential 135lb title bout between Juan Archuleta and Patrick Mix. Sergio has earned 10 of his last 11 wins by decision, but does understand the demand for exciting finishes in the sport of MMA today.
It will be interesting to see which direction Scott Coker goes with Sergio Pettis, but whatever his choice, it's clear to see the former UFC flyweight will be in the title picture for the coming years.
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