Want more wrestling news, rumors, and results? Be sure to visit PWInsider.com and PWInsiderXtra.com.
PFL solidified their playoff matchups in the Welterweight and Featherweight divisions on Friday. Let’s take a look at how we got there…
Main Card
Brendan Loughnane* def. Justin Gonzales via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 3:34 of Round 2
Logan Storley def. Luca Poclit via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Magomed Umalatov* def. Brennan Ward via sub (anaconda choke) (R1, 3:43
Gabriel Braga* def. Bubba Jenkins via TKO (injury) at 1:48 of Round 2
Preliminary Card
Lorenz Larkin def. Alan Dominguez via TKO (punches) at 4:46 of Round 1
Shamil Musaev* def. Murad Ramazanov* via TKO (punches) at 1:51 of Round 2
Timur Khizriev* def. Enrique Barzola via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Andrey Koreshkov def. Goiti Yamauchi via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27, 29-27)
Kai Kamaka III* def. Pedro Carvalho via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Neiman Gracie def. Don Madge* via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Tyler Diamond def. Brett Johns via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
(*) - qualified for playoffs
The Prelims
As usual, the Prelims played a big part in the playoffs on this PFL card. What stood out to me?
After getting a big win in his first fight of the season, Don Madge lost to Neiman Gracie. I’ll be honest - I was expecting more from Madge against Gracie. All due respect to Neiman Gracie, but he has not been impressing me much lately and I was expecting Madge to get another strong win to truly solidify his spot in the playoffs. Instead, he snuck into the playoffs despite a loss.
Kai Kamaka got some YouTube shine from the PFL and it paid off with a big win here to get into the playoffs.
He didn’t get into the playoffs, but it was great to see Andrey Koreshkov get back on track. It’ll be interesting to see if he gets on one of the playoff cards in a Prelim fight.
Shamil Musaev had a nasty TKO in his win over Murad Ramazanov. This was a fun fight and both men ended up getting into the playoffs. And guess what? They’ll run this one back in the first round. Musaev will have the psychological advantage.
Gabriel Braga vs. Bubba Jenkins
This went how I expected - Jenkins went for takedowns, while Braga went for the finish. Jenkins was getting some good clinches in, but Braga did a nice job of staying active in Jenkins’ attempts. In the end, Braga was able to get the finish with the help of an injury that Jenkins suffered. While I think Braga was on his way to a win, I would have liked to have had this fight have a clear winner without injury. Either way, Braga is in the playoffs and his fists will be dangerous.
Magomed Umalatov vs. Brennan Ward
Magomed Umalatov continues to surprise me…and I need to fix that. While I picked him to beat Brennan Ward, I didn’t expect it to come so easily. Umalatov is really well-rounded and made quick work of a really tough Ward. Nothing is definite, but I think we’ll be seeing Umalatov in this season’s finals. No more surprising me!
Logan Storley vs. Luca Poclit
Logan Storley was able to get through a late replacement as an opponent. Not a whole of people gave Poclit a chance, but he put up more of a fight than most expected.
Brendan Loughane vs. Justin Gonzales
This was a fun fight until the stoppage. The stoppage was necessary, as Loughnane’s knee split Gonzales wide open. It just stinks that it had to be stopped by a doctor instead of the ref. Gonzales is tough, but Brendan Loughnane was doing Brendan Loughnane things. He’s so damn good all around and he’ll be a favorite in the playoffs.
The Playoffs
Here’s how the playoffs will look, assuming there are no injuries or changes…
Welterweight
Shamil Musaev vs. Murad Ramazanov
Magomed Umalatov vs. Don Madge
Featherweight
Brendan Loughnane vs. Kai Kamaka III
Gabriel Braga vs. Timur Khizriev
Musaev and Ramazanov square off again to figure out who will probably take on Umalatov, while Brendan Loughnane gets an interesting matchup against Kai Kamaka. Braga vs. Khizriev is the most interesting matchup to me, as it’s the one fight that I think is a true coin flip.
My Picks
I ended up going 9-2. My two misses were the first two fights of the night. I thought I was on my way to another rough one, but I ended up finishing 9-0. I should have bet real money!
Overall, I thought this was a fun night of fights with an interesting finish to the regular season. I am looking forward to seeing what ends up being the finals in these divisions.
What did you think? Who do you think will make it to the finals in the Welterweight and Featherweight Divisions? Let me know at matt.tenhoeve@gmail.com. I’ll be back later in the week to talk about this week’s episode of The Ultimate Fighter. See you then!
