Anthony Pettis’ brothers, Sergio and Ray Pettis grew up in Wisconsin learning martial arts and taekwondo. The former UFC Lightweight Champion, Anthony, is the family’s middle child.
The 36-year-old grew up loving taekwondo and boxing, but there was a point he gave up on training. It happened after his father’s demise in 2003, but soon he found his way back to the martial arts world.
Anthony became one of the most famous names in UFC, winning the Lightweight Champion in 2013 after defeating Benson Henderson.
He then inspired his little brother, Sergio, to take up MMA, and now even he is regarded as one of the big names in the MMA world.
Recently, Anthony was so confident about his brother defending the Bellator Bantamweight title that he placed a bet of $50,000. And his brother didn’t disappoint him as he defeated his opponent, Patricio Pitbull, resulting in his brother earning a cool $122,500.
Anthony Pettis Brothers, Sergio, And Ray Pettis
Anthony Pettis and his two brothers, Sergio and Ray Pettis, were raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
If Sergio followed in his older brother’s footsteps, then Ray stayed away from the limelight. Ray, whose full name is Reynaldo Pettis, has a fourth-degree black belt and is a multiple-state champion.
Anthony has an age gap of six years with his younger brother, Sergio Pettis.
Previously, Sergio talked about how his brother inspired him to take up martial arts. Anthony was a basketball coach for little Sergio, but he later had to stop coaching his brother as he joined the MMA scene.
In an interview, Sergio said his brother made him cry in his first MMA training class. At the time, Sergio was 13 and was trying to pick up MMA because he wanted to grow out of being a soft kid.
And so he did. He began pursuing MMA after high school and is currently the Bellator Bantamweight Champion.
Sergio Pettis MMA Career
Standing at 5ft 6, Sergio Pettis competes in the bantamweight class. His first professional fight came against Kyle Vivian in Canadian Fighting Championship in 2011, which he won via TKO in the first round.
His rise continued as Sergio competed in NAFC, LOF, and RFA and had a winning streak of nine games before he made his UFC debut in 2013. Pettis was supposed to debut against Vaughn Lee on November 16, but as Lee injured himself, Sergio’s debut came against Will Campuzano.
He won his first UFC fight via unanimous decision but lost his second fight against Alex Caceres. Before quitting UFC for Bellator, Sergio fought against 14 fighters in the UFC, including his debut fight, and had a record of 9-5.
Sergio joined Bellator MMA in 2019 and has since fought in five matches. In 2021, Sergio had a shot for the Bellator Bantamweight Word Championship against Juan Archuleta, which he won by unanimous decision.
He successfully defended the title against Kyoji Horiguchi in 2022 and on June 16, defeated Patricio Pitbull to maintain his undefeated record in Bellator and continue to hold his belt.
Anthony Pettis Parents, Annette, And Eugene Pettis Jr
Anthony Pettis’s parents, Annette and Eugene Pettis Jr couldn’t watch him become a MMA star together.
Anthony’s father, Eugue Pettis Jr, passed away when the former UFC Champion was only 16. Eugue was stabbed by a robber in 2003 at his friend’s home.
In an interview, Anthony talked about the father-son bond shared by American professional boxer Danny Garcia and his father, Angel. The former UFC fighter said he probably would have the same bond with his dad if he was still with him.
Anthony said he and his brother got their fighting skills from their dad. He added that he certainly feels sad that he couldn’t spend much time with his father, but that made him the man he is today.
The former Lightweight Champion is super close with his mom. In 2014, he surprised his biggest cheerleader with a house and a car for Christmas. Speaking to Ariel Helwani in 2015, the fighter said his mom still asks him, “When will you get a real job?”
Annette might have stopped asking that question now, as her son has already proved himself at the highest level.
