Today, Wednesday, the Professional Fighters League was held in New York, in the United States, the final stage of the semi-finals of this season. Tonight, the finalists for the lightweight and welterweight divisions were decided, but Brazil, who had a representative in each category, ended up being eliminated from the finals after defeating Bruno Robusto and Carlos Leal.
Aubin Mercier defeats Robusto via TKO
Bruno Robusto reached the lightweight semi-finals against Olivier Aubin Mercier, the current champion in this category, who confirmed his favoritism and sealed his passport to the finals.
The whole first round was in full swing, with both fighters studying each other a lot and not adjusting many sequences. The Canadian delivered a knockdown with a left jab early in the second round and went for it, working both ground and pound. He continued to control his opponent and strike until he landed a barrage of blows on the mount, forcing the referee to interrupt and issue a technical knockout.
Highlights of PFL 9
In the final, Aubin Mercier will face Clay Collard, who took on Shane Burgos in the main event of the night, winning via unanimous decision after three rounds in a duel that had the crowd in the arena excited.
Sadibou Sy defeats Carlos Leal and goes to the finals
Representing Brazil in the semi-finals of the welterweight tournament, Carlos Leal faced Sadepo Sy, the reigning champion who had already won their previous encounter. And this time the result was no different.
The Brazilian started the fight trying to pressure his opponent, but quickly changed his strategy and started looking for the fight on the ground. However, Sai defended well and the dispute only reached the ground when Lil pulled his opponent for protection and fell to the bottom. But the Swede quickly got up and then spent the rest of the first round defending himself from attacks and getting to his feet.
The Brazilian managed to balance the fight at the beginning of the second round, when he delivered a knockdown and spent almost four minutes in front. The crucial stage had Lille avoid hitting his opponent and pressing him against the bars to try and bring him down without success. The fight went to the judges and Sadibou Sy won by split decision.
Another finalist in this category is Magomed Magomedkerimov, who asserted his favoritism in the duel against Solomon Renfro and won by unanimous decision of the judges.
The three Brazilian finalists
The final match of the 2023 season of the league is scheduled to take place on November 24 in Washington, United States, and will feature three representatives from Brazil in the fray for $1 million USD (approximately R$4.8 million) prizes.
The current lightweight champion, Larisa Pacheko, is looking for her second title, this time in the featherweight category, and will face Marina Mkhnatkina. In the men’s featherweight division, Gabriel Braga will face Jesus Penedo, while Renan Proplia will play a title hunt in the heavyweight division against Denis Goltsov.
See the full results of the event below:
Professional Fighters League – Qualifiers 3
August 23, 2023, in New York (USA)
main card:
Clay Collard defeats Shane Burgos via unanimous decision (29-28×3) (Semifinal)
Olivier Aubin Mercier defeats Bruno Robusto via TKO at 4:41 from R2 (Semifinal)
Sadepo Sy defeats Carlos Leal via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28) (Semifinal)
Magomed Magomedkrimov defeats Solomon Renfro via unanimous decision (30-27 triple) (Semifinal)
Biagio Ali Walsh defeats Ed Davis via TKO at 2:23 of the second round
Initial card:
Alexi Bergandi defeated Sean Stefanelli via unanimous decision (30-27×3)
Mostafa Rashid Nada defeats a Korean Kobe by technical knockout at 1:55 in the first round
Michelle Montague defeats Abigail Montes by submission at 3:38 of R2
Abdullah Al-Qahtani defeats David Zellner via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-25)
John Caldon defeats Nathaniel Grimard by technical knockout at 2:32 of the first round
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