Scotland’s Ray had flirted with retirement (more than once), but the opportunity to headline a card at home was more than he could pass up. Opposite Ray was Lewis Long, a Welsh welterweight who had previously competed for Bellator MMA and U.K. MMA mainstay Cage Warriors.

In the night’s co-main event, a pair of former UFC athletes joined Ray, another alum of the promotion. Roger Huerta was years removed from his “next big thing” status, and was instead trying to snap a nasty skid compiled in Bellator while making his promotional debut. He’d been paired up with Robert Whiteford, another Scottish star who had retired, then thought better of it with an opportunity to compete at home for the PFL in play.

Where to Watch PFL Europe 3

The PFL Glasgow card takes place on Saturday, September 28, 2024 taking place at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. The broadcast airs live on DAZN, results can be found below.

PFL Glasgow: Ray vs. Long Results

Stevie Ray def. Lewis Long by submission (Scottish twister), Round 1, 4:21
Rob Whiteford def. Roger Huerta by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Mark Ewen def. Yassin Chtatou by submission (D’arce choke), Round 1, 2:30
Lewis McGrillen-Evans def. Dean Garnett by KO (left hook), Round 3, 1:45
Alexander Luster def. Julien Pierre Lopez by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 1:15
Florim Zendeli def. Jack Grant by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Daniele Miceli def. Ibrahima Mane by TKO (punches), Round 1, 1:26
Jakub Kaszuba def. Daniele Scatizzi by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Connor Hughes def. Ignacio Capella by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Shanelle Dyer def. Valentina Scatizzi by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Paulina Wisniewska def. Karolina Wojcik by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Lorenzo Parente def. Stefano Catacoli by submission (armbar), Round 1, 1:45
Matiss Zaharovs def. Brian Hyslop by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 2, 4:18
Gemma Auld def. Weronika Pietruszka by TKO (punches), Round 1, 4:50

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The event, which serves as this year’s PFL Europe 3 card, will see Ray vs. Lewis Long serve as its main event; in the co-headliner, another Scottish star, Robert Whiteford, faces off with well-travelled vet Roger Huerta.

News of the booking was recently announced via press release by league officials. The event takes place at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland on September 28, 2024.

After defeating former UFC champ Anthony Pettis in back-to-back fights in 2022, Stevie Ray (25-13) lost in that year’s lightweight final, knocked out by Olivier Aubin-Mercier. In 2023, Ray came up short against Natan Schulte and Clay Collard, and later announced his retirement, the second of his career. It appears the chance to fight at home has lured him back to action, however.

Lewis Long (19-7) is coming off a win over Ashley Griffiths last September at Raged UK 17, however the fight has been flagged for legitimacy issues by Tapology, one of MMA’s premiere records keepers, due to Griffiths questionable record, which includes a long string of losses across multiple combat sports dating back to 2015. That run puts Griffiths at 17-0 across MMA, bare-knuckle boxing, and event a custom rules bout, though only his last four fights have been deemed ineligible for consideration.

Prior to that, Long had dropped a fight against Thibault Gouti.

Roger Heurta, who faces Whiteford in the PFL Glasgow co-main event, was last seen in Bellator MMA, posting an 0-4 record between 2018 and 2021. Both men are 41 years old, with the end of their respective careers in sight.

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Although he hasn’t had the best run in his historic career, he still has title aspirations.

“I’m here for the belt. That’s why I’m here. I’m still playing this game because I want to be a world champion. That is the only reason why I’m still playing this game,” Huerta said during a Bellator 255 media day this week.

The MMA veteran faces Bellator homegrown Chris Gonzalez (5-0), who is looking to add Huerta to his resume.

“I believe he’s a good grappler. That’s kind of what I’ve seen. I don’t really see a lot of other danger really that he can possess,” observed Huerta. “He does strike here and there, but other than that, he’s still up and coming. But he’s facing a veteran, a guy who’s seen a lot of things in this world and in this life and in this cage. I’m definitely going to display that and put him away.”

Gonzalez is also teammates with Huerta’s old nemesis Clay Guida. Guida and Huerta went to war in one of the best fights in UFC history back in 2007.

Huerta was asked what he thought about the pair training together, and for his take on the dynamic, fighting a teammate of Guida’s all these years later.

“It’s nothing man. I saw Clay’s last fight. He did well. Still the same old Clay, not a lot of improvements,” Huerta said. “Just pressures in, good cardio, tough as nails. But I’m here to display some skills. I’ve been all over the world, I’ve seen a lot of things. It’s nothing, a fight’s fight. Clay ain’t going to be in there, not his teammates, not no one. No one’s going to be in there, just him and myself. That’s it. He is in there with me. No one else.”

Watch the full Bellator 255 virtual media day scrum with Roger Huerta above. Bellator 255 takes place Friday, April 2 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. The card airs live on Showtime, and will be available in its entirety right here on Cageside Press.

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The co-main event of Bellator 234 in Tel Aviv, Israel featured UFC and ONE veteran Roger Huerta, once again looking to turn things around against the rising Sidney Outlaw. The card went down Thursday, but aired Friday on Paramount Network via tape delay.

Huerta opened on the outside, circling, but Outlaw almost immediately shot for a takedown, scooping his opponent up and putting him on his back. Huerta kept his guard closed, and high up the back. Outlaw dropped an elbow and controlled Huerta’s head with one hand. He then worked to step over his opponent, working to half-guard. Huerta managed to get a butterfly hook on the inside, stalling Outlaw briefly. However he eventually made it to mount, only for Huerta to scramble free. The next time they went down, just seconds later, Huerta reversed, getting a few short punches in on Outlaw. However, grappling was the story early, as Outlaw again looked to control his opponent by the cage and take him down.

Huerta would finish the opening round on his back. He’d be right back there early in the second, trying to throw elbows from bottom. A leg kick was the culprit. A scramble saw Huerta escape, but Outlaw wasn’t exactly against standing with him either. However Outlaw soon caught another leg off a kick and easily took the fight back down. Huerta would spend far too much time there, finally exploding out with just over a minute remaining in the second, only to be take down again, crammed up against the fence.

That led to a standup due to the lack of action, or namely the inability of Outlaw to either improve position or work for a finish. But yet another takedown followed, and Roger Huerta entered the third round badly in need of a finish. If you guessed his kicks were costing him the fight, you won a kewpie doll.

A finish for Huerta was not forthcoming in round three. Instead, Huerta was fighting off a takedown early thanks to a poorly placed kick, to no avail. He was planted on his back, with Outlaw trapping him along the fence. Huerta would scramble out, but he tried a kick that was once again caught. Deja vu all over again. Once again Huerta was taken down. Once again he broke free, but that took him to the ninety second mark. Another kick moments later was caught again; Huerta’s kicks were too slow, and too transparent. His continued reliance on them may not have cost him the fight, but they were certainly a big factor. Scratch that, they very much played a factor in costing him the fight.

Huerta has now lost all three of his Bellator fights in his current run. Outlaw, meanwhile, improved his current win streak to nine straight.

Official Result: Sidney Outlaw def. Roger Huerta by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

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Roger Huerta locks horns with Sidney Outlaw at Bellator 234 this week. The event emanates from Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, Israel, and is set to go down Thursday, November 14 at 4:00PM EST (Paramount Network will air the card the following night). Huerta vs Outlaw is the co-main event for the card. This is an intriguing crossroads fight at lightweight, between an established veteran and a surging pugilist looking to score a statement win.

Roger Huerta

In preparation for this fight, Roger Huerta has been putting in work with some familiar gyms. Ahead of the fight, he told us that he was working with “Guys over at Tiger Muay Thai and Phuket Thailand… I was able to get some good work in.” Huerta has big aspirations within Bellator’s 155lb class if he gets the ideal outcome at Bellator 234. “I’m after that world title. That’s the last thing I’m going for in this fight game,” he stated.

Huerta has checked out some footage on Sidney Outlaw prior to this fight. He is familiarizing himself with Outlaw’s skillset, but isn’t resting on this idea that Outlaw will be the same fighter on Thursday night as he has been in past fights.

“I went ahead and when I signed the bout agreement to fight him, I looked him up. Saw a few of his fights and kind of understood what he does mostly,” he said. “You know everybody changes their camps and so on. He could be a different fighter from what I’ve seen… I saw he was training with Jorge Masvidal so he should be ready to go.”

Bellator 234

Despite the aforementioned title aspirations, Huerta is by no means overlooking his next opponent. Huerta stated, “He’s tough. Seems heavy. Good grappler. Seems like once he takes you down, he’s good on the ground. From what I’ve seen doesn’t look like a heavy puncher. Again I’m not going to say I’m not going to be concerned or not looking out for that. I feel I’m pretty damn good everywhere as well. It’s going to be a good fight.”

Roger Huerta is very much focused on the present and what’s immediately ahead of him. There was a headline going around saying Huerta was seeking first Bellator win since 2010. Huerta’s thoughts on that are simply that “I’m not the same person I was yesterday or the day before. I’m a completely different person and a completely different fighter.”

Roger Huerta is someone who has fought for UFC, ONE Championship, and now Bellator MMA. As a fighter, he has been all over the place and sees the present landscape of mixed martial arts as being a fruitful one. “I think right now the fight game has grown quite a bit and it’s good for all fighters,” he finished.

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Roger Huerta was back in the Bellator cage, back in another short-notice fight, and back fighting in the U.S on Friday. At Bellator 205 in Boise, Idaho, Huerta fought on U.S. soil for the first time in years when he faced Patricky Pitbull in a key lightweight encounter. Huerta was filling in for Goiti Yamauchi, who was forced out of the fight due to injury.

Huerta pressed the action early in the opening bout of the main card. Pitbull then came on with a head kick and combination, that appeared to give Huerta pause. Another big kick by Pitbull backfired, however, as Huerta answered back with a blow that caught the Brazilian flush. By the midway point of the second round, both fighters were throwing hard, looking for the knockout blow. Yet while both found some success, it was toward the end of the round that they really began trading, with Pitbull launching a knee, then the pair standing and trading, with both landing bombs and rocking the other. Pitbull appeared to take notice, as he opted to bail out and land a takedown at round’s end.

THEY'RE GOING AT IT!@PatrickyPitbull and @RogerHuerta go from 0 to 100 REAL QUICK! #Bellator205 pic.twitter.com/JpztiAlp5u

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) September 22, 2018

The second started off with the firefight continuing, and Huerta ate a big left hook early. He grabbed on to a leg in desperation, and while he recovered briefly, Pitbull came back and landed a right hand that dropped Huerta for the finish!

With the win, Pitbull took sole possession of the KO/TKO record in Bellator, with nine.

Patricky Freire def. Roger Huerta by knockout, Round 2, 0:43

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Lest we forget, the definition of insanity is repeating the same action, over and over, expecting different results. Yet here we are again, witnessing Roger Huerta take another short notice fight in Bellator. He did just that in his return to the promotion earlier this year at Bellator 196. That night, he was on the wrong end of a submission, with former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson claiming victory. Later this week, at Bellator 205 in Boise, ID, Huerta will look for a different result, as he takes on Patricky Pitbull.

It’s a fight that, should he win, could propel him straight into the lightweight title picture in Bellator, he told Cageside Press heading into Friday’s main card battle against Pitbull. Which made it an opportunity he couldn’t turn down.

This is Huerta’s second stint in Bellator, something he told us he’s enjoying “quite well,” this time around. Citing the “good guys” at Bellator, he said “I’m fortunate, I’m fortunate to be here.” It’s an opportunity that came about because Huerta picked up the phone and made a call, rather than wait for an opportunity to come to him.

“I called [Scott Coker] to see if they would be interested in me fighting with their company, and he said yes. I got a call back by Vincent [Cho, Bellator’s matchmaker], and here we are,” Huerta explained. That turned into the short-notice fight against Benson Henderson back in April. That trip to Budapest didn’t go Huerta’s way, but it did show him what to expect in the modern day Bellator.

“I gotta train. I gotta train with other fighters, and just be better prepared,” he said of the lesson learned. “These guys are definitely up there in their skill level, and I have to work.” It’s something he’s addressed training at Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket, Thailand. “I think I’ve done that now. I’ve surrounded myself with a lot of good fighters, and we’ve been training, plugging away.”

One of the benefits of training overseas, “we have a lot of fighters from all over.”

Huerta has been used to a little international flavor in recent years. Competing for ONE Championship and elsewhere, he’s fought all over the globe. Bellator 205 in Boise, in fact, will be his first fight stateside since 2011. “I’m definitely looking forward to fighting in the states again,” he said of being back on American soil against Pitbull. “Idaho isn’t my home town, but I’m an American citizen.” Pitbull, properly known as Patricky Freire, of course, is not. That should give you some idea of who the fans will be pulling for.

As for any weight cut issues stemming from traveling back to the U.S. for the fight, Huerta isn’t worried. “I just have to not eat too much foods with sodium, high salts, stuff like that,” he told us. “A lot of greens, a lot of bland foods.”

The fight itself is another short notice battle against a tough opponent for ‘El Matador,’ but it was too good an opportunity to turn down. Bellator reached out to him after Goiti Yamauchi was forced out of the fight due to injury. “This guy’s [Pitbull] right in the mix for title contention. I beat him, then my hand gets thrown in the mix. So this is a no-brainer. I’ve got nothing to lose, all to gain.”

He recognizes the danger (Pitbull enters the night on a three-fight win streak), but the potential reward is worth it. “He’s game. He’s definitely got knockout power in both hands,” Huerta observed. “He’s a tough, tough, tough opponent. So I gotta bring it. I gotta be alert out there. I’ve got to bring my A-game. I’m definitely focused, and I’m coming with it.”

As for any prediction, “I ain’t no fortune teller, but hopefully [it ends] with my hand raised.”

Despite debuting back in 2003 and having fought all over, Huerta isn’t done yet. Citing older fighters like Mark Hunt, retirement isn’t exactly on the horizon. “I don’t see it any time soon. I just gotta get momentum, gotta get some good fights in, and be right in the mix.”

As for people who are quick to point out that Huerta’s best days might be behind him, Huerta wasn’t overly concerned. “I don’t know what people are thinking, to be honest with you,” he explained. “I live okay. I have an okay life. I focus on what I’m doing in my life, and what I’m doing on this planet. How I want to spend it. That’s my focus. Right now, I have a task at hand, I gotta fight Patricky Pitbull. That’s my job. So I’m going to go do that. After that, I get to close that mental state for a bit, before I have to re-open it again, before competing again.”

As for that next fight, and whether he’d be open to moving up to welterweight (where he has dabbled in the past), “I’m open for whatever the company would want. I have a place, I have a platform to showcase my skills. I look at myself as an artist, and that’s the gallery. And I get to go and do my thing, I get to test my skills with another skilled individual.”

Or, putting it another way, “I guess I’m just a pawn on the chess board.”

Don’t miss Roger Huerta testing his skills against Patricky Pitbull on Friday, September 21 in Boise, Idaho on the main card of Bellator 205. The televised portion of the event airs live on the Paramount Network starting at 9PM EST.

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Bellator 205 continues to struggle with injury woes. Just days after it was announced that headliner Pat Curran was out of his main event bout with A.J. McKee, the card has suffered another blow. This time, it’s Goiti Yamauchi who has pulled out of his fight with Patricky Pitbull. In his place, however, steps Roger Huerta, making his second trip to the Bellator MMA cage in his current run with the promotion.

According to a report by ESPN, who first broke the news, Yamauchi was forced off the card due to injury. In steps Huerta (24–10–1 (1)), who is 2-1 in his last three, though coming off a loss to Benson Henderson at Bellator 196 in April.

That 2-1 stretch doesn’t paint the full picture, however. After winning six straight bouts in the UFC in 2006-2007, capping it off with the Fight of the Year in 2007 against Clay Guida, Huerta went into one of the sport’s most notorious tailspins. Since August of 2008, a full decade, Huerta is 4-9, including a 2-3 stretch in ONE Championship, and now two runs in Bellator MMA.

Patricky Freire (19–8), better known as Patricky Pitbull, is the elder brother of Bellator featherweight champ Patricio Pitbull. Patricky remains a force at lightweight, and has won three straight bouts against Josh Thompson, Benson Henderson, and Derek Campos. Huerta will give him another shot at adding yet another notable name to his resume, albeit one of the downside of his career.

Bellator 205 takes place September 21 in Boise, Idaho at the CenturyLink Arena.

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The main event at Bellator 196 saw Benson Henderson back in the Bellator cage, taking on former UFC standout Roger Huerta. Huerta’s career, to this point, had the theme of missed opportunities. In Hungary at Bellator 196, Huerta was looking to make the most of his latest shot at glory. A win over the former UFC lightweight champ would frankly be huge. For Henderson, he was looking to return to form after a rough start to his Bellator career. The fight aired on Paramount Network on Friday.

Huerta caught a hard kick from Benson Henderson right off the opening bell, and it looked like we were in for a good one. Henderson looked focused and immediately launched a head kick that partially clipped Roger Huerta. Huerta moved to tie things up and buy recovery time. Henderson landed some knees to the thigh and took Huerta down; Huerta was bleeding badly from the earlier kick. However, he muscled his way back up, and looked for a takedown along the fence. Benson Henderson, however, was having none of it. From there, the pair settled down a little, but Henderson was doing real damage when he was on the attack, and clearly hand found his range. Huerta opened up with his kicks towards the end of the first round, but that was too little, too late. To add insult to injury, ‘Smooth’ added another head kick just before the bell.

Round two saw a much more active Roger Huerta working kicks early. Henderson then tripped Huerta up. Coming out of it, Benson Henderson caught Huerta in a guillotine, and in an instant, forced the tap! Benson Henderson, after struggling in his Bellator career thus far, finally looked like his old self!

Benson Henderson def. Roger Huerta by submission (guillotine choke), Round 2, 0:49

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When James Gallagher fell out of his bout with Adam Borics in the main event of Bellator 196, it was thought the card would very likely be in jeopardy.  Instead, an even more intriguing fight takes place between former UFC stand-outs Benson Henderson and Roger Huerta.  Both men are in desperate need of a career resurgence, and on just a few weeks notice they will have a chance to rejuvenate their careers in Budapest, Hungary.

For Benson Henderson, it is no secret that his Bellator run has not gone as hoped when he joined the promotion in 2016.  In the last two years he has amassed a 1-3 record that’s included losses to then champions Andrey Koreshkov and Michael Chandler.  Furthermore, his lone victory over Patrício Freire was highly criticized as it was unanimously felt he was losing the bout until Freire suffered an injury.

The run was a far cry from his time as UFC lightweight champion where he was one victory away from tying the legendary BJ Penn for title defenses.  He left the promotion riding back-to-back victories, but in 2018 has said he is aware that he has not been able to produce the performances that were expected of him.  He has made no excuses for the setbacks, although it is now common knowledge that he fought through several injuries to his knee and only recently underwent surgery to help correct the issues.  Henderson has said he wants to prove he can win the lightweight title in Bellator, but on short notice he is facing an opponent arguably even more desperate for victory than he is.

Roger Huerta will always be remembered for two gritty performances in 2007.  His three round battle with Leonard Garcia was long regarded as one of the best battles in the Octagon in the lightweight division.  However, it was his war with Clay Guida that went down as an all-time classic.  His thousand yard stare after losing the first two rounds preceded a lights out third frame where Huerta hurt Guida and secured a rear-naked choke for the victory.

But after an impressive 4-0 mark in 2007, his career took a sharp turn.  He would not return until a year later where he lost to top contender Kenny Florian.  It would be another year before he fought again, this time losing to surging contender Gray Maynard.  He would sign with Bellator in 2010 where he went 1-2, notably losing handily to then champion Eddie Alvarez in a non-title bout.  He would be released from the promotion and went on to fight on the Asian MMA circuit.  He admitted that after losing via soccer kick KO in 2011 under the ONE banner that he thought his career was over.  He stated “I was already willing to call it quits.  After that soccer kick, I was like ‘Alright, that’s it for me.”

The most interesting part of his return to a major US promotion is his activity.  Huerta has fought only five times since 2013 and has mounted a 3-2 record against less than stellar competition in ONE and Phoenix FC.  Most recently, Huerta’s last victory came by disqualification in the United Arab Emirates when his opponent landed illegal elbows in the second round and lead to a stoppage due to the severity.  The circumstances have not disheartened Huerta who has said he feels rejuvenated and hopes to use a victory over Henderson to negotiate a deal with Bellator.  Via MMA Junkie, Huerta revealed he was offered a four-fight contract that he was disappointed with.  He countered that offer with a one-fight deal — if he impresses, Huerta can then negotiate a better contract.

Stylistically, it comes down to effort and ability at this stage of their careers.  On paper, Benson Henderson has more shown more tools and technical prowess throughout his career.  The question will be, is he able to utilize all of his abilities?  Henderson should look to work behind his jab to set up his heavy kicks.  Also, he has shown a very competent submission game and may look to get Huerta to the mat where he can neutralize “El Matador’s” striking.

Huerta’s performance in 2017 showed he still posses the same threats as earlier in his career.  He is a game opponent who likes to control the center of the cage and look to set up his kicks or his left hand.  The key to victory will be to apply forward pressure.  Huerta still throws at a high output and he should look to crowd Henderson so he can create exchanges in the pocket.  As Rafael dos Anjos exploited, taking space away from Henderson removes his ability to throw his kicks and shoot for takedowns.

At this stage of either man’s career, losing is not an option if they intend to remain relevant in the mixed martial arts landscape.  For Huerta, a loss would likely write him off from ever returning to prominence.  For Henderson, a 1-4 mark will raise questions of whether or not he can still compete at the elite level in mixed martial arts.  With countless battles between the both of them, another war is nearly guaranteed in Budapest.

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