By the Numbers: Patricio Freire vs. Juan Archuleta

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Juan Archuleta is currently on an impressive winning run that includes four victories in Bellator MMA. As a result, he has been granted a date with two-division world champion Patricio Freire. Their highly anticipated title showdown, which coincides with the first round of Bellator’s Featherweight Grand Prix, will take place on Sept. 28 in Inglewood, California. As fight day nears, take a look at some of their career-defining numbers.

Age and pro experience

Both Freire and Archuleta are 32 years old, but the former has been in the game much longer. Freire made his professional debut at an event called Desafio on March 9, 2004, winning by TKO. After 12 fights, mostly in his hometown of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, “Pitbull” got the call from Bellator. Since receiving that call in 2010, Freire has fought exclusively for Bellator, amassing a promotional record of 17-4, which makes for an overall record of 29-4.

Archuleta made his pro debut nine years after Freire, at BAMMA USA - Badbeat 10 on Aug. 9, 2013. Before Bellator, he fought in different promotions, most notably King of the Cage, World Series of Fighting and Gladiator Challenge. He currently holds a record of 23-1.

Active winning streak

Archuleta’s only stint in WSOF ended in a submission loss to Andres Ponce. It was a setback that seemed to fuel his fire as “The Spaniard” subsequently went on an 18-fight winning streak which he plans to extend to 19 by beating Freire. For his part, since losing to Benson Henderson in a non-title fight at Bellator 160, Freire has won four in a row, with all four fights featuring either Featherweight or Lightweight titles on the line.

Knockout rate

With 10 KOs or TKOs in 29 wins, Freire owns a 34 percent knockout rate. His victims include Michael Chandler, Daniel Straus, Daniel Weichel and Justin Wilcox, as well as former and future UFC standouts Diego Nunes and Wilson Reis.

Archuleta has dropped and stopped 11 opponents. With a total of 23 victories, he registers a 48 percent knockout rate. Apart from Dantas, he has also starched the likes of UFC veterans Robbie Peralta and Chris Tickle.

Submission rate

Archuleta only has one submission victory on his resume, a Brabo choke finish at Gladiator Challenge. That makes for a four percent submission rate. Freire, on the other hand, is a jiu-jitsu black belt who has tapped out 11 opponents, mostly early in his career. In Bellator, he has submitted Henry Corrales and Will Romero once and Daniel Straus twice. Interestingly, he has never been submitted in his entire pro career, whereas Archuleta’s lone defeat was by submission. He was caught in a triangle choke by Ponce at WSOF 19.