The eight finalists for PFL MENA’s inaugural playoffs are set.
Bouts in the bantamweight, featherweight, lightweight and welterweight divisions took place in Saudi Arabia this weekend, with the winners advancing to compete in championship fights later this year.
Here’s a quick rundown of everybody who punched their ticket into the finals:
Alhyasat Takes Out Saudi Arabia’s Al-Qahtani, Lines Up Final Against Reda
Albdalrahman Alhyasat pulled off an upset in Friday’s main event, setting himself up for a featherweight grand final bout against Islam Reda.
Alhyasat took out Saudi Arabia’s own Abdullah Al-Qahtani, using his work on the ground to win on scorecards. While he consumed some heart shots during stand-up exchanges, submission attempts and striking on the ground in the second and third rounds made it a clear win for Alhyasat.
Jordan’s Alhyasat, who is just in his second year as a pro, will enter the finals with a flawless record of five wins. He snapped the undefeated run of Ahmed Tarek in the tournament’s first round, beating Ahmed Tarek.
Reda had a dominant three-round ground performance against Maraoune Bellagouit, exposing a significant gap in grappling skills between the two fighters. Control on the canvas scored him a decision victory, extending his winning streak to six fights in a row.
Reda will have a clear experience edge over Alhyasat later this year, with more than a decade of fights to his name. His prior tournament fight saw him get past Adam Meskini in a decision result.
Eid Picks Up Fast Victory, Mohammadseifi Earns Hard-Fought Decision Win In Lightweight Semis
A quick finish win placed George Eid into the lightweight finals, where he will meet Mohsen Mohammadseifi later this year.
Brutal ground and pound from Eid snapped the undefeated record of Omar Reguigui with a quick performance. Lebanon’s Eid capitalized on a failed takedown attempt from Reguigui in the fight’s second minute, stringing together a series of hard punches that caused his opponent to shell up and forced the referee to stop the fight.
Eid was coming off a decision win from the season’s earlier round, defeating Abbas Khan. The fight on Friday was the second-quickest win in his decade-long career as a pro.
Mohammadseifi had a dramatic scorecard win over Souhil Tairi, prevailing after a back-and-forth fight. Mohammadseifi controlled the striking for the first half of the bout, including a left hook knockdown in the opening round. However, after nearly getting finished by a body shot late in the second frame, the fight became much closer.
The third round saw the lightweights trade hard shots on the feet, with Mohammadseifi doing enough to get the scorecard nod.
Mohammadseifi earned a stoppage win in his quarter-final bout, putting away Josh Togo in the first round earlier this year.
El Dafrawy To Face Undefeated Alaqraa In Welterweight Grand Final
Omar El Dafrawy scored a first-round finish in the co-main event, setting him up for a welterweight grand final against 24-year-old undefeated prospect Mohammda Alaqraa.
A hard left cross from El Dafrawy sent PFL vet Jarrah Al-Silawi crashing to the canvas in the first round. El Dafrawy followed up on the hard shot with ground and pound strikes, causing the referee to end the bout.
The win adds to El Dafrway’s career resurgence as of late. After falling to an even record of wins and losses last year, he has gone on a run of six consecutive victories. In the opening round of PFL MENA, he beat Antony Zeidan on scorecards. This week, he stopped an experienced talent who was entering the bracket after appearing in the promotion’s main season in 2022 and 2023.
Alaqraa had a one-sided performance against Amir Fazli, keeping him on the canvas for nearly all 15 minutes of their semi-final clash. The wrestling and grappling masterclass from Alaqraa earned him a seventh pro win since making his pro debut in 2021.
The rising talent, who trains out of prominent gym American Kickboxing Academy, scored a third-round finish over Youcef Ouabbas in his previous PFL MENA bout.
PFL Vets Haz, Taleb To Face Off In Bantamweight Final
In a matchup between two fighters attempting to win a PFL tournament for the second time, Rachid Haz and Ali Taleb will collide in the bantamweight finals.
Taleb scored a brutal first-round knockout against Jalal Al Daaja, piecing together a two-punch combination to end the fight early. A hard left hook followed up by a clean overhand right floored Al Daaja, ending the bout in just over two minutes
Haz advanced to the finals following an incredibly close three-round battle against Elias Boudegzdame. Haz had a fair amount of control time on the ground but had to fend off submission attempts and dominant positions from Boudegzdame throughout the bout.
Haz and Taleb joined PFL’s inaugural MENA season after attempting to win a bracket in the promotion’s Europe brand last year. Taleb notably made it to the semi-finals of a bracket in 2023, losing to Khurshed Kakhorov, who ended up winning the entire bracket.
Quick Results
Bout 10: Abdalrahman Alhyasat def. Abdullah Al-Qahtani via Decision, Unanimous (Featherweight Semi-Final)
Bout 9: Omar El Dafrawy def. Jarrah Al-Silawi via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 3:09) (Welterweight Semi-Final)
Bout 8: Mohammad Alaqraa def. Amir Fazli via Decision, Unanimous (Welterweight Semi-Final)
Bout 7: Mohsen Mohammadseifi def. Souhil Tairi via Decision, Unanimous (Lightweight Semi-Final)
Bout 6: Ali Taleb def. Jalal Al Daaja via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 2:18) (Bantamweight Semi-Final)
Bout 5: Islam Reda def. Maraoune Bellagouit via Decision, Unanimous (Featherweight Semi-Final)
Bout 4: Rachid Haz def. Elias Boudegzdame via Decision, Unanimous (Bantamweight Semi-Final)
Bout 3: Georges Eid def. Omar Reguigui via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 1:37) (Lightweight Semi-Final)
Bout 2: Malik Basahel def. Saher Qasmieh via Decision, Unanimous (Amateur)
Bout 1: Adam Meskini def. Yazeed Hasanain via Decision, Split
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