Another Bellator 288 fight will take place at the Wintrust Arena, this weekend. In one of the co-main events, Russian lightweight Usman Nurmagomedov will fight against Brazilian lightweight Patricky Freire. The fight will start on November 19th at 04:30 UK time.
Usman quickly climbed up the ratings and made it to the title fight, bypassing the top 5 fighters. It happened mainly due to the name and authority of his brother Khabib Nurmagomedov. Nevertheless, we cannot deny that Nurmagomedov Jr. has a very high level, He has yet to have such experienced opponents as Freire in his career, and he hasn’t yet fought in such big events in the co-main event of the evening. Can Usman handle that kind of pressure? Probably, but he should hardly go as the big favorite. Patrick, though an age-old fighter, is a Bellator champion and has a very heavy puncher. Also, “Pitbull” has a black belt in BJJ and has a pretty good feel for wrestling.
Usman Nurmagomedov is a 24-year-old Russian fighter. He is the brother of Umar Nurmagomedov and a cousin of Khabib. Unlike his brothers, Usman does not gravitate to wrestling and prefers to fight in the rack. He has pretty good anthropometry for the lightweight division and excellent stamina. Nurmagomedov Jr. trains at Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov’s school and at the AKA gym under the guidance of Khabib and Xavier Mendez. His sparring partners are such titled fighters as Islam Mamedov, Islam Makhachev, Gadzhi Rabadanov, Movlid Khaibulaev, and so on. The 24-year-old Russian does not have much experience in professional MMA, but he has achieved some success in amateur sports. He is the Russian and world champion in mixed martial arts among juniors. Usman made his Bellator debut in 2021 and has had four solid wins since then. He is currently ranked number one in the lightweight division and is the top contender for the championship belt.
Patricky Freire is a 36-year-old Brazilian fighter. He is the older brother of Bellator bantamweight champion Patricio Freire. Pitbull’s strength is his very heavy punching and he has 16 knockout victories to his credit. Freire Sr. is also good in wrestling and has a black belt in BJJ. For a long time, Patricky trained in the top Brazilian club Chute Boxe Academy. Still, then he and his brother Patricio opened his own gym, Pitbull brothers, where train fighters like Bruno Silva, Daniel Rodriguez, and Fabio Maldonado. It is also worth noting that the Brazilian has a lot of experience under his belt and has been fighting at the professional level since 2005.
Age – 24;
Height – 1.80;
Weight – 70;
Reach – 1.83;
Statistics – 15-0-0;
Wins – 8 Knockdowns, 5 Submissions, 2 Decisions;
Losses – 0;
Age – 36;
Height – 1.70;
Weight – 70;
Reach – 1.80;
Statistics – 24-10-0;
Wins – 16 Knockdowns, 1 Submission, 7 Decisions;
Losses – 3 Knockdowns, 1 Submission, 6 Decisions.
Where will this fixture be played?
The event will take place at Wintrust Arena, Chicago.
Which bookmaker has the best odds for this game?
We recommend checking out the odds for the Bellator 288: Usman Nurmagomedov vs Patricky Freire at 1xBet.