Patricio “Pitbull” Freire won the Bellator MMA Featherweight Title when he submitted Daniel Straus in the second round of this past Friday Night’s Bellator 178 event.
After the fight, the victorious Freire hopped on top of the cage to celebrate with the fans in attendance, a celebration that wound up costing the fighter a few thousand dollars.
Sadly for the new champion, the Mohegan Tribe’s Department Of Athletic Regulation fined him $2,500 for hopping to the top of the cage.
Pitbull’s manager in Matheus Aquino first broke the news of the fighters fine on Twitter:
@MikeBohnMMA @PatricioPitbull .One other fact, the comission fined him 2500 dollars for getting on top of the cage. Way to ruin the mood
— Matheus Aquino (@MatheusDCAquino) April 22, 2017
The champion did issue a statement to MMA Fighting upon hearing the news.
“Are you fucking serious?” Freire said. “We aren't allowed to celebrate anymore? “Check Bellator's Instagram right now and you'll see a picture of me on top of the cage with thousands of likes. I was living my moment. And look at that, it was great for TV too. The commission should find other ways to make money instead of taking it from the fighters' pockets and dirtying their names. This is a joke.”
This is not the first time a fighter has been fined for leaving the cage or jumping on top of the cage in a post-fight celebration as Bellator MMA Middleweight Champion Rafael Carvalho and UFC fighter Charles Oliveira have been fined recently as well.
