PFL’s lightweight women and heavyweight men will fight to qualify for the promotion’s grand finals on the main card of Thursday’s show. In the main event, 2019 champ Kayla Harrison will look to advance to her second consecutive grand finals when facing Genah Fabian in a semi-final bout.
Before the four playoff bouts on the main card, the event will also feature five showcase bouts on the prelims from the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, USA.
Follow along throughout the evening for live updates.
A full preview of the card can be read here.
Quick Results:
Preliminary Card (6:00PM EDT) (ESPN+ / TSN Bonus)
Bout 1: Christian Lohsen def. Jonas Flok via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 2: Amanda Leve def. Miranda Barber via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 4:18)
Bout 3: Marina Mokhnatkina def. Claudia Zamora via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Mo DeReese def. Carl Seumanutafa via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 5: Renan Ferreira def. Stuart Austin via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:31)
Main Card (9:00PM EDT) (ESPN / TSN 2)
Bout 6: Ante Delija def. Denis Goltsov via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 7: Taylor Guardado def. Mariana Morais via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 8: Bruno Cappelozza def. Jamelle Jones via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 1:33)
Bout 9: Kayla Harrison def. Genah Fabian via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:01)
Live Coverage:
Bout 9: Kayla Harrison (10-0) vs. Genah Fabian (4-1) (Lightweight)
Harrison Continues Dominant Run, Stops Fabian Within A Round For Grand Final Spot
Kayla Harrison steamrolled Genah Fabian in Thursday’s main event, stopping her within a round to secure a spot in the PFL grand finals.
Harrison stopped Fabian with over two dozen punches from her back. This came after she scored a takedown early in the round from the clinch, allowing her to completely take over the fight.
Harrison moved to the back of Fabian, allowing her to land the punches that caused the fight to end.
Harrison has now finished all three of her opponents in 2021. She defeated Mariana Morais and veteran Cindy Dandois earlier this year to score 12 points in the regular season and take the top playoff seed at lightweight.
The 2019 PFL champ will now meet Taylor Guardado in the PFL grand finals in late October.
Fabian made it into the PFL playoffs after a win over Laura Sanchez and Julija Pajic in the regular season.
Bout 8: Bruno Cappelozza (12-5) vs. Jamelle Jones (12-6) (Heavyweight)
Cappelozza Continues Streak of Finishes, Earns Grand Final Spot
Bruno Cappelozza kept his streak of explosive stoppage wins going in the heavyweight semi-finals, stopping Jamelle Jones in the second round with punches.
Cappelozza closed in on a finish in the second round, dropping Jones with a jab two minutes into the round. After Cappelozza landed numerous shots to a shelled-up and grounded Jones, the referee swooped in and stopped the fight.
Cappelozza did significant damage to the legs of Jones in the first round, connecting with loud, chopping leg kicks in the opening frame.
Cappelozza entered the playoffs as the top-seed heavyweight. He had two first-round finish wins in the regular season, stopping Ante Delija and Mo DeReese.
He will now face Delija again in the grand finals.
Prior to the 2021 season, Cappelozza had been out of the cage since 2018.
Jones fought once in the 2021 season, finishing Klidson Abreu within a round in June to earn six points in the playoffs.
Bout 7: Taylor Guardado (2-1) vs. Mariana Morais (17-11) (Lightweight)
Guardado Earns Third Consecutive PFL Win, Advances To Finals
Taylor Guardado reached a big milestone in just her fourth pro fight on Thursday, defeating Mariana Morais via split decision to advance to the PFL lightweight grand finals (29-28 Morais, 29-28 Guardado & 29-28 Guardado).
Guardado prevailed over Morais in what was a close three-round battle. Both fighters had back-and-forth exchanges on the feet and were able to score takedowns.
Guardado has had a flawless PFL run thus far, scoring three wins since joining the promotion earlier this year. She made it into the playoffs with wins over Helena Kolesnyk and Laura Sanchez in the regular season.
Morais was put into the playoff bout yesterday after the previous opponent for Guardado, Larissa Pacheco, missed weight by two pounds.
Morais competed in the regular season, getting stopped by Kaitlin Young and fighting to a split decision win over Kaitlin Young.
Bout 6: Denis Goltsov (27-6) vs. Ante Delija (18-4) (Heavyweight)
Delija Gets Decision Nod For Grand Final Spot, Eliminates Goltsov
Ante Delija secured his first-ever PFL grand final spot to open the main card, earning a unanimous decision victory over Denis Goltsov (29-28, 29-28 & 29-28).
The first round was a close, slow-paced battle, with Delija landing shots and being able to get control time.
Delija seemingly missed a takedown attempt during the second round, allowing Goltsov to take top position over him on the ground. Goltsov was able to do damage with punches while on the back of Delija, securing him one round on scorecards.
After returning to the feet, Delija was able to land a takedown and get full guard over Goltsov before the second round concluded.
Delija was able to control Goltsov for most of the final round, taking him down and keeping him grounded for three minutes.
Delija had a rough start to his 2021 PFL season, getting stopped in just 46 seconds by Bruno Cappelozza early in the round. He was able to secure his spot in the playoffs with a first-round win against Chandler Cole a month later.
Goltsov finished both of his opponents in the 2021 season, defeating Mo DeReese and Brandon Sayles.
Goltsov made it into the semi-finals of PFL’s 2019 playoffs as well, getting three wins that year before losing to undefeated Ali Isaev.
Bout 5: Renan Ferreira (7-2) vs. Stuart Austin (15-6) (Heavyweight)
Ferreira Scores 31-Second Win, Spoils PFL Debut of Austin
Renan Ferreira showed his explosive fists on the prelims, putting away promotional newcomer Stuart Austin early in the first round with a two-punch combination.
Ferreria was able to floor Austin in the opening minute with a left-and-right hand combo. While he nearly came forward for a follow-up punch on the ground, he stopped himself before doing so, and the referee came in to end the bout.
Ferreira did not qualify for the PFL playoffs earlier this year, exiting the regular season with four points.
He had a controversial first fight to the season, having a victory over former UFC Champion Fabricio Werdum overturned to a no contest. This was due to a tap to a submission from Ferreira that was not noticed during the fight but was seen afterward on replay.
Ferreira won his other regular season bout, defeating Carl Seumanutafa via unanimous decision.
Austin, a former Bellator fighter and MMA veteran, was making his PFL debut on a two-fight win streak.
Bout 4: Carl Seumanutafa (12-13) vs. Mo DeReese (8-4) (Heavyweight)
DeReese Breaks Losing Streak With Decision Win
Mo DeReese picked up a slow-pace decision victory over heavyweight Carl Seumanutafa on Thursday, defeating him via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28 & 30-27).
A large portion of the first and second rounds took place in a clinch position against the cage. Both fighters were able to put down significant amounts of control from these exchanges.
DeReese landed hard ground and pound strikes on Seumanutafa in the final round after the heavyweight veteran fell to the ground at a moment. It was hard to tell whether he collapsed due to a slip or a knockdown.
DeReese out-landed Seumanutafa in the striking department throughout.
DeReese broke a three-fight skid in the appearance. The losses included a stoppage loss he suffered against Bruno Cappelozza earlier this season.
Seumanutafa is now on a five-fight losing streak that includes four appearances in PFL.
Bout 3: Marina Mokhnatkina (5-2) vs. Claudia Zamora (3-1) (Lightweight)
Former Bellator Fighter Mokhnatkina Wins PFL Debut
Bellator alum Marina Mokhnatkina won her PFL debut on Thursday, out-landing Claudia Zamora for three rounds to take a unanimous decision win (30-27, 30-27 & 30-27).
Mokhnatkina had a steady output of strikes through all three rounds and was able to score takedowns at points.
Mokhnatkina won her Bellator debut two months back, defeating Amanda Bell to snap a two-fight skid.
Zamora entered Thursday on a three-fight win streak, including two fights from earlier this year.
The matchup between Moknatkina and Zamora was made yesterday due to a large reshuffling on the card following the weigh-in results. Mokhnatkina was first scheduled to face Kaitlin Young, and Zamora was booked to fight Mariana Morais.
Bout 2: Miranda Barber (1-1) vs. Amanda Leve (0-0) (Lightweight)
Barber Deals With Adversity, Secures Submission In Pro Debut
Just a minute after being knocked down by punches, Amanda Leve scored a submission win against Miranda Barber to win her pro MMA debut on Thursday.
Barber’s strikes had Leve in trouble early, but she was able to turn the situation into a win minutes after. The pro newcomer was dropped by an overhand right in the fourth minute, getting knocked down again moments after from a follow-up punch.
Leve quickly recovered from this position, getting up, scoring a takedown and taking the back of Barber. She attempted a rear naked choke on Barber, causing a tap in the final minute of the round.
Barber, a pro who also has experience in boxing, entered the fight with a win and a loss each.
Bout 1: Christian Lohsen (8-2) vs. Jonas Flok (14-5) (Lightweight)
Lohsen Prevails In Grappling-Heavy Fight, Wins PFL Debut
Christian Lohsen won his PFL debut on Thursday, defeating Jonas Flok after a back-and-forth battle that included many fast grappling exchanges (29-28, 29-28 & 29-28).
Lohsen had a strong start to the fight and was able to take another round later in the match.
Lohsen had control on the ground for most of the opening round, taking the back of Flok and even attempting a rare banana split submission at one point.
The second round was much closer as Lohsen and Flok engaged in close striking and fast scramble positions on the ground.
Lohsen took a dominant position halfway through the final round, raining down punches from full mount. That’s not to say Flok had his moments as well, as he was able to attempt a toe hold at one point on Lohsen.
Lohsen is now on a two-fight win streak, including a victory he took last year over Dennis Hughes on an iKon card.
Flok was entering the bout after scoring a stoppage win late last year.
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