By The Numbers: Sergio Pettis

Sergio Pettis appears to have peaked at exactly the right time.

The Roufusport star retained his undisputed Bellator MMA bantamweight championship and passed his most significant test to date on Dec. 3, when he zapped Kyoji Horiguchi with a spinning backfist in the fourth round of their Bellator 272 main event. Pettis entered Round 4 facing a three-rounds-to-none deficit on the scorecards and exited the cage having authored a potential frontrunner for “Knockout of the Year.” He now heads into his 2022 campaign on the strength of five consecutive victories.

As Pettis awaits his next assignment from Bellator matchmakers, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied him to this point.

28: Years of age for Pettis, who was born in Milwaukee on Aug. 18, 1993. “The Fugitive,” “Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday,” “Rising Sun,” “The Secret Garden” and “Jurassic Park” were the Top 5 movies at the domestic box office at the time.

8: Pettis victories as a teenager, accounting for 36% of his career total (22). He made his professional debut as an 18-year-old old when he cut down Kyle Vivian with a first-round head kick at a Canadian Fighting Championship event on Sept. 10, 2011. Pettis was a perfect 8-0 by the time he celebrated his 20th birthday.

99: Combined wins between the five men—Horiguchi, Juan Archuleta, Ricky Bandejas, Alfred Khashakyan and Tyson Nam—Pettis has defeated during his current winning streak. They sport a cumulative record of 99-30-1 (.761).

3: Countries in which Pettis has plied his trade as a mixed martial artist. He has gone 19-5 in the United States, 2-0 in Mexico and 1-0 in Canada.

11: Consecutive calendar years in which Pettis has recorded at least one victory. In addition to his 2-0 mark in 2021, he went 2-0 in 2011, 4-0 in 2012, 4-0 in 2013, 2-1 in 2014, 1-1 in 2015, 1-0 in 2016, 2-1 in 2017, 1-2 in 2018, 1-0 in 2019 and 2-0 in 2020.

51: Seconds needed for Pettis to punch out Dillard Pegg and capture the inaugural Resurrection Fighting Alliance flyweight championship on June 21, 2013. Having occurred in his eighth outing as a pro, it remains the fastest finish of his 27-fight career.

4: Pettis wins by submission. His methods of choice: two guillotine chokes, one arm-triangle choke and one kimura. Pettis owns four other wins by knockout or technical knockout and 14 more by decision.

662: Total strikes landed by Pettis as an Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight, placing him sixth on the organization’s all-time list at 125 pounds. Only Demetrious Johnson (1,678), Tim Elliott (1,445), Dustin Ortiz (1,124), Joseph Benavidez (1,026) and Brandon Moreno (771) have been credited with more.

7: Promotions in which Pettis has competed as a mixed martial artist. He has gone 9-5 in the UFC, 4-0 in Bellator, 4-0 in the North American Fighting Championship, 2-0 in the Resurrection Fighting Alliance, 1-0 in Canadian Fighting Championship, 1-0 in Madtown Throwdown and 1-0 in Legends of Fighting Championship.

.713: Cumulative winning percentage between the five men—Rob Font, Jussier Formiga, Henry Cejudo, Ryan Benoit and Alex Caceres—who have beaten Pettis. They boast a combined record of 87-35.