PFL’s playoffs will continue on Friday night, with finalists for the promotion’s lightweight and light heavyweight tournaments being confirmed by the end of the night. Successful fighters from Friday’s main card at the Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida, USA will return later this year in championship fights with a lucrative grand prize on the line.
On the light heavyweight side of things, a pair of former PFL champs will chase a second title in matchups against notable contenders. A first-time champ is guaranteed at lightweight, where three PFL rookies and long-time promotional fighter Clay Collard will try to advance into the finals.
Here’s a preview of the full evening.
Preliminary Card (5:30PM EDT) (ESPN+)
Bout 1: Michelle Montague (5-0) vs. Marilla Morais (3-1) (Featherweight)
The prelims for Friday’s card include four matchups which are practically prospect showcases, plus an alternate fight for the lightweight bracket. In the first of that four-pack of fights unrelated to the ongoing PFL season, featherweight Michelle Montague will take on Marilla Morais.
Montague joined the PFL roster through the “Challenger Series” in 2022, winning her pro debut with a first-round finish. She has since appeared in three more matchups under the PFL/Bellator banner since 2023, with all victories coming via rear naked choke. Her last win was her quickest to date, continuing the losing streak of Poland’s Karolina Sobek with a submission in under three minutes.
Morais will be ending a 13-month absence from competition this weekend. She took her first loss on a CFFC card last year, getting finished by bantamweight prospect Rebecca Evans. She had a strong start to her career before then, going on a run of three consecutive wins from 2017 to 2018.
Bout 2: Jordan Oliver (1-0) vs. Braydon Akeo (5-3) (Featherweight)
Freestyle wrestler turned MMA fighter Jordan Oliver will pursue his second pro win when he faces Braydon Akeo.
34-year-old Oliver transitioned to MMA last year after a decorated career in freestyle wrestling under Oklahoma State University, winning the NCAA Division I Championship in 2011 and 2013, along with four Big 12 Championships as well. He had a quick outing for his first MMA appearance, submitting his opponent in just 65 seconds at Bellator 298.
Akeo is a step up in competition for Oliver, as his first opponent entered the bout with just one loss and no wins on his record. 27-year-old Akeo has fought as a pro since 2018, facing many tough names on the regional scene. He’s coming back after losing a decision on a CFFC show in April, losing to Ricardo Fuentes.
Bout 3: Thad Jean (7-0) vs. Chris Brown (10-4) (Welterweight)
Undefeated Thad Jean will take on tough regional vet Chris Brown in a welterweight matchup.
Jean joined the PFL roster in 2023 after putting together a solid run of four wins on the regional scene. He has scored a trio of wins since then, including back-to-back first-round finishes.
Brown is an accomplished fighter from the U.S. regional scene with six wins in notable promotion LFA. He will be appearing after a more than one-and-a-half-year layoff, the longest time in between fights since his pro debut in 2017.
Bout 4: Elvin Espinoza (10-1) vs. Mads Burnell (19-6) (Lightweight)
Lightweight tournament alternates Elvin Espinoza and Mads Burnell will face off as part of Friday’s prelims.
While Espinoza has been on the PFL roster since 2021, this year marked his first run in the promotion’s season format. He started the year strong, putting away Adam Piccolotti in the third round with a flying knee. However, after Gadzhi Rabadanov ended his undefeated record with a unanimous decision result, he didn’t make the cut for the playoff bracket.
Burnell joined the PFL roster this year after a seven-fight Bellator run. He had the inverse of Espinoza’s year, starting with a loss but returning shortly thereafter with a victory. His debut PFL season kicked off with a submission defeat to Michael Dufort, but he bounced back a few weeks later by beating Clay Collard via unanimous decision.
Bout 5: Danny Sabatello (14-4) vs. Lazaro Dayron (8-0) (Bantamweight)
The prelims are set to conclude with a clash between polarizing bantamweight Danny Sabatello and rising talent Lazaro Dayron.
Sabatello joined the Bellator roster in 2021 after having an impressive run in Florida-based promotion Titan FC. His grinding performances over names like Brett Johns and Leandro Higo moved him up the promotion’s 135-pound rankings, and his brash personality set him apart from others.
The past couple of years haven’t been as successful for Sabatello, having lost three of his past four appearances. This included an unsuccessful interim title fight against Raufeon Stots in 2022 and a finish loss to Magomed Magomedov.
Hoping to end the tough patch he currently finds himself in, Sabatello will meet a name who has been on the rise at 135 pounds. Dayron has attained eight wins in notable promotions, beating talents in Combate Global and Titan FC since debuting in 2021. He’s getting an appearance in the PFL after a pair of notable victories, ending the undefeated run of Manuel Exposito and submitting Arnold Berdon in Lights Out Fighting.
Main Card (9:00PM EDT) (ESPN / ESPN+)
Bout 6: Biaggio Ali Walsh (1-0) vs. Brian Stapleton (0-0) (Lightweight)
Before the light heavyweight and lightweight playoffs kick-off, a showcase fight at lightweight will take place featuring Biaggio Ali Walsh.
Ali Walsh, the grandson of famous boxer Muhammad Ali, has been a heavily-pushed talent by the PFL since his amateur days. After stringing together six victories in his amateur career, he debuted in February with a victory against Emanuel Palacio.
This weekend was originally scheduled to see Ali Walsh take on Korey Taylor, a pro with four finish wins on his record. However, after Taylor withdrew, Ali Walsh was matched against pro newcomer Brian Stapleton.
Stapleton is becoming a pro fighter after a lengthy, albeit shaky amateur career. He evened his record up at four wins and four losses last year with a stoppage. He’ll now have a big stage and a somewhat popular opponent for his pro debut. No pressure, right?
Bout 7: Brent Primus (14-3) vs. Clay Collard (25-13) (Lightweight Semi-Final)
PFL’s 2024 lightweight bracket will kick off with a semi-final fight between a promotional rookie and a name who is anything but a newcomer. Former Bellator Champion Brent Primus will continue his search for a PFL title when facing Clay Collard.
After a 14-fight Bellator run, Primus joined the PFL roster this year and has been on a solid run so far. He became a guaranteed playoff talent after securing back-to-back submission wins, submitting Bruno Miranda and Solomon Renfro earlier this year. The 39-year-old is on somewhat of a career resurgence at the moment, with his victories as of late (along with a 2023 loss being overturned to a no-contest) being his longest streak of wins since he was undefeated back in 2017.
Collard has come close to earning a PFL title and hopes in his fourth season he could finally earn that achievement. The 31-year-old lightweight has been on the PFL roster since 2022 and has made it into the playoffs twice during three seasons in the past. He went as far as the finals in 2023 but came short of winning a belt after losing to two-time champ Olivier Aubin-Mercier.
A second-round finish win over former Bellator champ Patricky Pitbull scored Collard five points in the season, enough to get him into the playoffs. A solid playoff run would turn around what has been somewhat of a rough 2024 for Collard, losing a pre-season fight to AJ McKee Jr. and then dropping a PFL bout to Mads Burnell.
Bout 8: Gadzhi Rabadanov (22-4-2) vs. Michael Dufort (13-5) (Lightweight Semi-Final)
The other half of PFL’s lightweight semi-finals will see Michael Dufort and Gadzhi Rabadanov collide.
Rabadanov proved to be a solid Bellator prospect prior to entering the PFL this year, stringing together five wins in the promotion. His streak has only continued as a lightweight season fighter, beating Solomon Renfro and Elvin Espinoza earlier this year via decision. While he has captured titles in Europe, this weekend is another step toward Rabadanov earning his first major U.S. title.
Similar to the aforementioned Clay Collard, Dufort made his way into the lightweight playoffs despite ending his season with a loss. A second-round submission over Mads Burnell in April put Dufort on the board, giving him enough points to get into the playoffs. This weekend he will be trying to rebound after losing a split decision against Adam Piccolotti.
Bout 9: Rob Wilkinson (19-2) vs. Dovlet Yagshimuradov (23-7-1) (Light Heavyweight Semi-Final)
On a redemption quest, 2022 PFL Light Heavyweight Champion Rob Wilkinson will meet Dovlet Yagshimuradov in a semi-final fight.
Wilkinson captured a PFL title in his rookie year for the promotion, putting together four consecutive finishes to grab the belt. While he returned in the following year to try and go back-to-back, his run was suddenly stopped in the regular season after failing a drug test administered by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC). He has returned with a strong start to this year, finishing UFC alum Tom Breese in 70 seconds, then beating former two-division LFA champ Josh Silveira via split decision to safely advance into the playoffs.
Yagshimuradov is among the numerous Bellator contenders who made the move over to a PFL division this year. A three-fight winning streak that he developed in Bellator has further developed in the ongoing light heavyweight season, finishing Jakob Nedoh in the first round of a season fight, and then overcoming Simon Biyong on scorecards.
Bout 10: Impa Kasanganay (17-4) vs. Josh Silveira (13-3) (Light Heavyweight Semi-Final)
Continuing his plan to become the first-ever back-to-back champion in light heavyweight PFL history, Impa Kasanganay will meet Josh Silveira in the headlining bout of the evening.
Kasanganay’s PFL success has carried over from one season to another, having now gone an impressive six wins and no losses through season action last year and in 2024. He secured the light heavyweight bracket’s top seed with a pair of quick wins in the regular season, stopping Alex Polizzi in the first round with strikes, then earning a doctor stoppage victory over Jakob Nedoh. Nothing has stopped Kasanganay in tournament action as of late, making him a heavy favorite heading into this weekend.
Silveira previously met Kasanganay in the 2023 grand finals, losing in a five-round decision outcome. The American Top Team prospect will just have three rounds to work this time, trying to get something going after a slow start to his year.
Silveira scored six points in an unusual fashion during the regular season, scoring a takedown against opponent Sadibou Sy which caused him to suffer a thumb injury in the second minute. While the win was an unorthodox finishing sequence, it nonetheless earned Silveira crucial points for getting into the finals. The win became even more important after he lost his second regular season fight to Rob Wilkinson, causing him to rely on the points he earned at the start of the season.
“Coninha” is undoubtedly in the underdog role this weekend, trying to avenge a defeat against a champion. A successful performance would be the biggest win of his career thus far and would get him one win away from a world title.
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