Doo Ho Choi vs Patricio Pitbull — How the Korean Superboy Wins at UFC 331

The bout is contracted at featherweight for three five-minute rounds. It currently sits on the preliminary card, though UFC 331 has only seven bouts announced so far and the order can still shift.

The path here is worth noting. After stopping Daniel Santos in the second round in May 2026, Choi named Pitbull directly, and the request was granted two months later. On paper it was a reach: Pitbull is ranked 15th at featherweight in the official UFC rankings while Choi sits outside the top 15. An unranked fighter called out a ranked one, and a win puts him straight into the rankings.

The main event that night is reported to be Charles Oliveira vs Arman Tsarukyan II for the BMF title, though this remains at the reporting stage and has not been officially announced by the UFC.

Choi once opened his UFC run with three consecutive first-round knockouts and looked like the division's brightest prospect. His 2016 fight with Cub Swanson at UFC 206 was named fight of the year and was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame's Fight Wing in 2022. Then losses, military service and injuries pulled him off the roster.

The fighter who came back is a different one. A draw with Kyle Nelson in 2023 shook off the rust, then came TKO wins over Bill Algeo and Nate Landwehr. Against Daniel Santos in May 2026 he lost the first round and still turned it around in the second, earning Fight of the Night. He is 17-4-1 with 14 finishes.

The change is in the tank. His corner, led by Chan Sung Jung, pointed out that the old Choi would have folded in that kind of grind. Stuffing all six of Santos's takedown attempts came from the same place.

Patricio Freire is the most decorated fighter Bellator ever produced: five featherweight title reigns, two at lightweight, and a knockout of Michael Chandler that made him a simultaneous two-division champion. A record of 37-9 is a career that spans an era.

The UFC chapter has been rougher. He dropped his debut to Yair Rodriguez by decision in April 2025, beat Dan Ige on the cards that July, then lost a decision to Aaron Pico in April 2026 — a UFC record of 1-2.

Age is a factor too. He is 39 with a documented neck issue. That said, he has never been finished, and no honest read of this fighter skips that.

Pitbull's game starts by conceding the reach. He does not walk in. He stands in the center and waits for the opponent to cross into his range before letting his hands go. He could mix in clinch and wrestling instead, and he refuses — a level of discipline analysts describe as something they could not personally maintain.

Three concrete tools. First, when an opponent throws a leg kick or body kick without setup, he drops a right straight over the arc of it — a lethal trap against anyone who kicks carelessly. Second, he slides out by exactly the margin needed to make a punch miss and returns immediately to his own range, with no wasted footwork. Third, in the pocket his hook-to-cross is a fixed routine, and once it lands he pours on body shots, knees and elbows.

Add a guillotine off the takedown. He traps the neck as opponents shoot doubles and goes to the jumping version often. Layer in accumulated lead-leg calf kicks that kill their movement and the whole risk-taking counter approach starts to make sense.

The price of countering is volume. He does not lead, so if the opponent declines to engage the round empties out. This is the identified way he loses: not by being finished, but by falling behind on the cards.

A longer fighter who keeps disrupting his base with inside kicks and body kicks while working the jab leaves him with no entry point. His power comes from his legs, so attacking the knee and thigh to collapse that foundation is the textbook approach.

The counter timing can itself be baited. Feinting a step in draws the right hand early or lets you see him load it. And while he reads honest, linear striking well, he is slow against unorthodox arcs — Sergio Pettis repeatedly caught him with wheel kicks and flying knees.

First, can Choi lead with volume? Pitbull empties rounds against passive opponents. The weighted jab Choi showed against Santos — not a range-finder but a punch heavy enough to stop an opponent from backing off — would put him ahead on the cards.

Second, is Choi's right hand readable? Chan Sung Jung himself said it makes no sense to fight Choi without preparing for it, so the weapon is exposed. Pitbull also counters over kick arcs. Throwing straight, honest strikes is the dangerous route here; feints and angle changes are mandatory.

Third, the three-round format. Without a fourth and fifth round, an early deficit is close to fatal. Choi came back from a lost first round against Santos, but Santos faded. Whether a 39-year-old who has never been finished fades the same way is another question — and if Choi's power lands once, none of the math matters.