Patricio Freire, Juan Archuleta Booked for Bellator Featherweight Tourney Bout on Sept. 28

The first bout of Bellator MMA’s featherweight grand prix is set, as Patricio Freire will defend his 145-pound title against Juan Archuleta on Sept. 28.

Sherdog.com confirmed the pairing with a promotion official following an initial report from ESPN.com. Freire vs. Archuleta will take place at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif. All told, eight first-round featherweight matchups are expected to take place this fall.

Freire enters the bout on a four-fight winning streak. In his last outing, the 32-year-old captured the lightweight crown with a first-round technical knockout of Michael Chandler at Bellator 221.

Archuleta has kicked off his professional tenure with victories in 23 of his first 24 fights, a stretch that includes five triumphs under the Bellator banner. The 31-year-old is coming off a second-round knockout win against ex-bantamweight king Eduardo Dantas at Bellator 222.