Emmanuel Sanchez had yet to taste defeat in Bellator MMA prior to June 26, 2015, having previously notched wins in the cage against Stephen Banaszak and Alejandro Villalobos. The Featherweight class is crowded in Bellator, but with a 10-1 record he certainly gave off the impression of a fighter on the rise.
Then Sanchez ran into a brick wall in the form of Pat Curran, a two-time Featherweight champion for the promotion. Filling in as a replacement for the injured Goiti Yamauchi, Sanchez did some damage in the exchanges, but ultimately dropped a unanimous decision to "Paddy Mike.