Sergio Pettis lands spinning backfist for KO

Sergio Pettis retained the Bellator bantamweight title. Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Sergio Pettis lands spinning backfist for come-from-behind KO

By Adam Stites | Last updated 12/4/21

Sergio Pettis pulled off an incredible comeback victory Friday night to keep hold of the Bellator bantamweight belt when he knocked out Kyoji Horiguchi with a spinning backfist.

Pettis, 28, lost each of the first three rounds of the fight and landed just 19 strikes compared to Horiguchi's 73. But one devastating strike in the latter half of the fourth round was all it took for Pettis to erase his earlier struggles and leave the cage victorious.

.@sergiopettis OUTTA NOWHERE!

What a way to end the 2021 Bellator MMA season LIVE on @SHOsports. #Bellator272 pic.twitter.com/g8Kstu4E3v
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) December 4, 2021

"I came out here and got beat up for four rounds pretty much," Pettis said after the knockout, via ESPN. "I was just like, 'Man, I'm losing this fight. I've gotta do something spectacular.' It came out at the right time."

Horiguchi won the Bellator bantamweight title in 2019, but vacated the belt later that year due to injury. In his absence, Pettis became the bantamweight champion earlier in 2021. Both fighters had previous stints in the UFC.

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