Former Bellator MMA bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis returns at PFL Chicago this Saturday, finding himself in the main event against something of an unexpected foe in the debuting Mitch McKee.
Albeit undefeated and a former LFA champ, McKee is unranked, little known, and not the pairing Pettis (25-7) was expecting after going 2-0 in 2025.
“Interesting, I thought it was interesting for sure,” Pettis told Cageside Press in an interview ahead of the promotion’s return to the Wintrust Arena in Chicago. “The whole tournament mix-up thing kind of threw off everything. I was ready to fight the championship winner, [Marcirley] Alves. Things got a little held-up on his end, he was hurt at the time.”
When the PFL offered Mitch McKee in Chicago, Pettis jumped at it. “I’m okay with it, man. I’m here to fight every single one of them, I’ve never said ‘no’ to a fight throughout my whole career, so I’m not going to start now. Even when it’s a risky fight for me to take. He definitely could come and beat me, number one, and him being not ranked would definitely look bad on me.”
With McKee’s low profile but high-level wrestling and overall talent, Pettis admitted that “it’s a risky fight for sure, risky to my position,” but added that “I think it’s also a risky fight for him, for his health. I’m going to go out there and be a veteran, go out there and try to hurt the man.”
Asked whether there was one particular thing, one area within McKee’s game that he’d taken notice of and needed to watch out for, Pettis suggested that “I think everybody who fights me does that one particular thing, and it’s going to be wrestling me. Putting me on the cage, trying to get me in referee position, front headlock position, trying to stall me out.”
Pettis also admitted that Mckee has some power in his hands. “He’s not afraid to throw. That’s the thing about fighting these up-and-coming fighters, they haven’t been hit with anything yet, so they’re very confident, it’s unknown to them. Having that confidence is definitely important in a fight for sure.”
It’s hard not to look at Sergio Pettis’s return at PFL Chicago and not think of what’s missing. Primarily, legendary coach (and former kickboxer) Duke Roufus, founder of Roufusport, the gym Pettis has long called home. Roufus was a constant presence in Pettis’s corner and in his life; he passed away suddenly just weeks after the Milwaukee native’s early October win against Magmed Magomedov.
While some might find it hard to get back into the fighting spirit after such tragedy, “I almost feel like it was easier to get back into fight camp mentality, because I have something to prove in this fight,” Pettis explained. “Not having Duke in my corner, it definitely hurts but at the same time, everything he taught me, I’m going to implement into my game plan and show the world that Duke Roufus’s style is going to be everlasting.”
Pettis still has a solid crew in his corner including brother Anthony, a former WEC and UFC lightweight champ. And Roufus will no doubt be there in spirit. “I obviously miss Duke, it’s crazy not to have him, it’s hard to accept this reality without him. But to be honest I think I’m going to go out there and still get the job done, do what I need to do and be a professional fighter.”
Watch our full interview with PFL Chicago headliner Sergio Pettis above. The event takes place on Saturday, April 11, 2026 at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL.
