Connect with us

Sports

BREAKING: Illness Rules Out Anthony Pettis From PFL 4 Bout Against Alexander Martinez

Former UFC lightweight champ Anthony Pettis is out of his bout at PFL 4 against Alexander Martinez due to illness. The news first came forth via AG Fight and Pettis who was raring to bounce back from his debut loss, will have to wait. Lightweight champion Natan Schulte will take on at the Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City.

Chiefly, Pettis’ withdrawal wasn’t the only notable change on the card as 2019 featherweight champ Lance Palmer is out of PFL 4. He will take on Movlid Khaybulaev at PFL 6 and their original opponents will take on each other at PFL 4 instead. Despite the changes, the card is still stacked with exciting fighters like Bubba Jenkins and Clay Collard.

Anthony Pettis
LAS VEGAS, NV – APRIL 23: Anthony Pettis prepares to enter the Octagon before facing Edson Barboza in their lightweight bout during the UFC 197 event inside MGM Grand Garden Arena on April 23, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Not to mention, boxing ace Claressa Shields finally makes her debut in MMA against Brittney Elkin on the main card. Fans have been waiting to see what ‘T-Rex’ Shields brings to the table after training with the likes of Jon Jones in Albuquerque. Having ‘Showtime’ Pettis on the card would have gone a long way in bolstering the profile of the stacked card.

Also Read: UFC 263 Suffers a Blow as Fighter Involved in an Accident 

Anthony Pettis: ‘Showtime’ all over again

Pettis left the UFC and moved out to PFL despite being on a two-fight winning streak with the UFC. Much like his brother, Sergio Pettis, the move to part ways with the UFC was spurred due to money. Not to mention, things have gone quite well for Sergio Pettis who recently picked up a world title at Bellator MMA.

Anthony Pettis was unable to set up a meaningful run towards the end of his UFC tenure despite putting together some good wins. He moved up to welterweight at one point and his KO win over Stephen Thompson is one for the ages. However, consistency remained a problem despite racking signature wins prompting a move to a different setting.

However, Anthony Pettis’ body of work speaks for itself and his resume is as stacked as it comes. Not to mention, he holds a submission win over the current UFC lightweight champion, Charles Oliveira, albeit from 2016. The setback in his debut against Collard was merely a footnote in what is to be a lucrative run.

Anthony Pettis
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE – MARCH 23: Anthony Pettis walks to the Octagon prior to his welterweight bout against Stephen Thompson during the UFC Fight Night event at Bridgestone Arena on March 23, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

He still has a chance to make it into the playoffs despite suffering the aforementioned UD loss to Collard.

Read this story: 5 Interesting Facts You Need to Know About Jairzinho Rozenstruik

The post BREAKING: Illness Rules Out Anthony Pettis From PFL 4 Bout Against Alexander Martinez appeared first on EssentiallySports.