Ali Isaev

PFL 6 Matchups Announced

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This week PFL announced it’s matchups for their sixth event of the 2021 season. The event will take place on June 25th and in the main event Kayla Harrison (9-0) on Cindy Dandois (16-6) and the former PFL heavyweight champion Ali Isaev (9-0) will be making his first appearance of the season.

Isaev was pulled from the first PFL event for the heavyweights and was docked a point for having his fight fall through. In his first matchup of the season, he will be taking on Renan Ferreira (6-2, 1 NC).

Ferreira took on former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum (24-9-1, 1 NC) in his first matchup of the PFL season. This matchup was layered in controversy after the way that it ended.

The fight started with an incredible pace and Werdum was able to lock in a triangle choke early. It clearly looked like Ferreira tapped from the choke, but the referee didn’t see it. Ferreira was able to get out of the choke and started dropping bombs.

The referee called a stop to the action and spoiled the PFL debut of Werdum. Werdum claimed he lightened the choke after feeling the tap and appealed the loss. The athletic commission overturned the fight to a No Contest. I figured PFL would do the rematch, but instead, Ferreira will take on Isaev.

PFL Round 2 for Werdum

Fabricio Werdum is getting a second chance to make an impressive statement in PFL. In reality, he should have a first round submission win on his Pro Fight League resume, but nothing can change that at this point.

In his next fight, Werdum will take on Brandon Sayles (6-1). Sayles pulled off arguably the most impressive performance of all the heavyweights in his first matchup of the season. He took on the hot prospect, Mohammed Usman (7-2).

Sayles looked incredibly slick on the feet and it ended dropping Usman multiple times. Once the fight was on the ground, Sayles locked up a choke and put Usman out. He will look to pull off another upset in his second PFL matchup of the season.

As mentioned above, Kayla Harrison will headline and I expect her to roll in her second fight of the season. I’ll be very curious to see how Larissa Pacheco (14-4) looks in her second fight as she takes on Helena Kolesnyk (5-3). Great matchups for the sixth PFL event of 2021.

PFL 3 Results: Controversy as Renan Ferreira appears to tap, but gets TKO win over Fabricio Werdum

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Tonight at PFL 3, the heavyweights got their opportunity to kick off the 2021 season. In the main event of the evening, former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum (24-9-1) was making his PFL debut.

Standing in his way tonight was the massive Renan Ferreira (6-2). While a lot of attention was on the main event, there was one name that was missing from tonight’s card. That man is the defending PFL heavyweight champion Ali Isaev (9-0).

Earlier this week, PFL announced that Isaev’s fight would not happen tonight although a reason was not given. Isaev and his opponent Hatef Moeil both recieved -1 point for their fight not happening. That said, the heavyweights still put on a show in their season opener.

A fight I was incredibly intrigued by was the matchup between Mohammed Usman (7-2) and Brandon Sayles (6-1). Usman is the younger brother of current UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman.

Mohammed Usman looks like a top prospect and I was incredibly excited to watch him debut with PFL. However, Brandon Sayles looked incredibly prepared and was ready to give Usman a challenge in his debut with the promotion.

PFL 3 Heavyweight Results

Mohammed Usman was a huge betting favorite heading into PFL 3. However, it was evident from the opening bell that the odds were off. Brandon Sayles looked sensational tonight in a fight that turned out to be a lot of fun.

Sayles was incredibly light on his feet and just seemed to beat Usman to the punch all night. In the second round, Sayles dropped Usman a couple of times before getting his back. Once there, he choked Usman out to get the five-point finish. Incredible performance at PFL 3 from Brandon Sayles.

The main event between Ferreira and Werdum started out crazy as both men started with flying kicks. After the kicks, the two men ended up on the ground. The former UFC champion started out on top.

However, Ferreira was able to reverse the position and end up on top. Once Ferreira was on top, Werdum was able to lock in a triangle choke. It was incredibly deep, but Ferreira was dropping bombs on Werdum while defending.

It appeared that Ferreira tapped, but the referee never stopped it and Werdum appeared to loosen the choke. Ferreira landed bombs as he did and the fight was stopped. Ferreira gets the TKO win, but it looks like he should’ve lost by submission. Crazy finish to the third PFL event of 2021.

PFL announces heavyweight matchups featuring Fabricio Werdum – Renan Ferreira

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PFL is gearing up for the start of their heavyweight season. The promotion has announced it’s first round of matchups which will take place on May 6th on ESPN. Headlining the card is former UFC heavyweight champion, Fabricio Werdum (24-9-1).

PFL made a number of big signings in 2020. While the promotion held no fights last year, they went to work in gearing up for their biggest season yet. One of their biggest signings was the former UFC champion.

Werdum is coming off of a huge win against Alexander Gustafsson and the 43 year old is ready to make a run at the PFL heavyweight title. In his first matchup, Werdum will be taking on fellow Brazilian, Renan Ferreira (6-2).

Ferreira will be making his debut with the promotion. The last time he fought was in 2019 when he took on current UFC heavyweight, Jared Vanderaa. Ferreira won that fight by submission.

Ferreira is a huge heavyweight standing 6’8 and usually weighing around the heavyweight limit of 265 pounds. All six of his wins have come via TKO or submission so you know that he’s not going to make Werdum’s PFL debut easy.

Other PFL heavyweight matchups

There are several other key matchups in this initial heavyweight round for PFL. One guy to watch would be the 2019 champion Ali Isaev (9-0). The Dagestani heavyweight will be taking on Hatef Moeil (10-4).

Moeil will enter PFL having won six fights in a row including wins over James McSweeney and Ricco Rodriguez. Another heavyweight I have my eyes on is Mohammed Usman (7-1). Usman is the younger brother of UFC welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman.

Mohammed Usman will be making his PFL debut against Brandon Sayles (5-1). UFC veteran Justin Willis (8-2) also makes his return for this upcoming season in PFL. Willis hasn’t fought since his loss to Curtis Blaydes. That loss in 2019 snapped an eight-fight win streak.

In his debut, Willis will be taking on Russian contender, Denis Goltsov (25-6). Goltsov lost to Isaev in the semi-finals of the 2019 season. This is arguably the matchup I’m the most excited about. The 2021 PFL heavyweight season should be a good one and I’m excited for it to get going.

Sizing up PFL’s 2021 heavyweight season

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PFL is currently gearing up for their return for the 2021 season. After COVID cancelled the 2020 season, the promotion is ready to hit the ground running this year. While no fights took place in 2020, PFL sure stayed in the news with a number of big signings.

One of the biggest signings for PFL in 2020 was Fabricio Werdum (24-9-1). The former UFC heavyweight champion completed his contract with the UFC back in July on Fight Island. That night, Werdum welcomed Alexander Gustafsson to the heavyweight division.

In reality, it smelled like a showcase for Gustafsson. Werdum looked awful against Alexey Oleynik in May where he lost a split decision and this was a quick turnaround. Many (including myself) wrote off the 43 year old former champion.

However, Werdum showed everyone up that night. After a quick takedown, Werdum was able to lockup an armbar for the win halfway through the round. From there, he immediately raised his value on the free agent market.

PFL and Bellator were both very interested in bringing in Werdum. Werdum had the Fedor rematch waiting in Bellator, but PFL wanted him to bring more attention to their heavyweight division. In the end, Werdum signed with the Pro Fight League and he will be highlighted this season.

Other PFL heavyweights to watch

There are three other PFL heavyweights I’m really watching for during the upcoming season. The most obvious one to me would be Ali Isaev (9-0). The heavyweight from Dagestan was the 2019 PFL heavyweight champion.

With four dominating performances, Isaev put the world on notice that he’s a threat at heavyweight. The next guy I have my eyes on is Justin Willis (8-2). “Big Pretty” hasn’t fought since March of 2019. That was the final fight he had with the UFC.

Willis took on Curtis Blaydes and came up short by decision. However, up until that point, Willis was 4-0 in the UFC and that included a win over former title challenger, Mark Hunt. Willis is definitely a sleeper in PFL’s upcoming season.

The last guy I have my eyes on is Mohammed Usman (7-1). The younger and much bigger brother of the current UFC welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman. Mohammed Usman is riding a four-fight win streak as he makes his debut in the big leagues under the PFL banner.

I cannot wait for this upcoming season of PFL. The promotion took the time off last year to really raise the bar in terms of talent on their roster. I love that another big promotion is making waves in US MMA. You can view the full heavyweight roster below.