Sergio Pettis out of Bellator bantamweight grand prix; Juan Archuleta steps in to meet Raufeon Stots

Bellator bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis will not be part of Bellator’s bantamweight grand prix as originally planned.

An injury has forced Pettis to withdraw from a proposed opening round clash against Raufeon Stots at Bellator 279, and as a result, Juan Archuleta will step in for the reigning 135-pound champion. Promotion officials confirmed the news following an initial report from CBS Sports. An interim title will be on the line when Archuleta and Stots square off on April 23.

The exact nature of Pettis’ injury was not disclosed, but the Roufusport standout did release a statement via social media revealing that his ailment will require surgery and a lengthy recovery process.

“Well, some things aren’t meant to be,” Pettis wrote. “Unfortunately hurt myself bad last week during training, was waiting for the results and it turns out I’ll be out for the next [six to nine] months. I’ll be getting my first surgery after years of competing which happens to be the worst timing ever. I lose out on a chance to make a [$1 million] dollars. Definitely depressing af but I’m a get the ball rolling on getting healthy and back to work. Good luck to the rest of the bantamweights in the tournament but just know y’all got lucky as f---.”

The 28-year-old Pettis is in the middle of a five-bout winning streak that includes four victories in Bellator competition. He claimed the 135-pound belt with a five-round verdict over Archuleta at Bellator 258 before defending the crown with a spinning backfist KO of Kyoji Horiguchi at Bellator 272 this past December.

Bellator 279 takes place at the Neil S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, and will also see Cristiane Justino defend her featherweight title against Arlene Blencowe in a rematch, while Horiguchi locks horns with Patrick Mix in another bantamweight grand prix pairing.

Prior to relinquishing the bantamweight strap to Pettis, Archuleta captured the title with a unanimous decision over Mix at Bellator 246 in September 2020. The former King of the Cage champion has also challenged for featherweight gold in the California-based promotion, falling to Patricio Freire at Bellator 228.

"I'm very honored, obviously, and excited and grateful for the opportunity," Archuleta told CBS Sports. "There's more to being a champion than just having the belt, right? When I won the Bellator world title I always knew how to carry myself as a champion. This is just to show that I'm always ready and always in the gym training. When you're always prepared, you can get the opportunity of a lifetime. I'm ready to get my belt back.”

Stots, who like Pettis trains at Roufusport, takes a nine-bout professional winning streak into the tournament. He is coming off a unanimous decision triumph over Magomed Magomedov at Bellator 264.