A fight between former teammates and two of the best bantamweights in the world was ultimately lackluster; however, Sergio Pettis did enough to defeat Raufeon Stots at PFL Chicago.
Pettis dictated the pace early with kicks, landing clean combinations, while Stots didn't bring out his expert wrestling abilities until scoring a takedown with about 40 seconds left in the round.
Pettis landed a slick backfist early in the second, but Stots responded by landing a strong punch that stumbled Pettis before landing a takedown. Pettis didn't provide much defense from there, as Stots controlled the round on the ground.
Both men traded in a stand-up affair for the third round before, again, Stots scored a takedown with 40 seconds left, but didn't do enough to take the round.
All three judges scored the fight for Pettis 29-28.
Sergio Pettis Outworks Raufeon Stots In Battle Of Former Teammates At PFL Chicago
Pettis, the former Bellator bantamweight champion, came into this fight off a pair of losses against Patchy Mix (losing his belt in the process) and Kyoji Horiguchi (a rematch of Pettis' award-winning knockout in 2021).
Stots, the former interim Bellator champion, is now 3-2 in his last five.