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Welcome to Midnight Mania!
The Kayla Harrison show continued tonight (Thurs. August 19, 2021), which is to say PFL’s women’s Lightweight tournament moved another step forward with its semi-final match ups. In the main event, two-time Olympic Judo gold medalist Kayla Harrison squared off with Kiwi kickboxer Genah Fabian.
After a brief feeling out process, Harrison dove into the clinch and pressed her foe against the cage. The -4000 favorite began working knees before landing a trip takedown directly into side control. It didn’t take long for Harrison to move into mount, where heavy punches began to land.
Fabian tried to keep moving from bottom position, but she was stuck in a tough dilemma between punches and the potential armbar. As Fabian tried to scramble, Harrison flattened out her opponent from back mount, securing the wrist ride and pounding away until the referee called the contest.
Check out the highlight clips below:
Kayla Harrison is in full control! #PFLPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/pjHLK9RK7P
— PFL (@PFLMMA) August 20, 2021
ITS OVER! Kayla Harrison is heading back to the #PFLChampionship!#PFLPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/0TYzpC53M2
— PFL (@PFLMMA) August 20, 2021
Earlier in the night, Taylor Guardado defeated Mariana Morais via decision, earning herself a spot in the finals vs. Harrison. The odds on the matchup between the 3-1 Lightweight and 11-0 defending champion are certain to be astronomical, which is typical of Harrison’s PFL match ups.
Can anyone challenge the Judoka?
Insomnia
Broken jaw, infections, COVID-19 and worse — Mark Madsen has good reasons for being sidelined for the last 1.5 years.
Nina Nunes vs. Amanda Lemos sounds like a great step up for Lemos and dangerous challenge for the veteran.
UFC acertou Nina Nunes x Amanda Lemos para evento do dia 18 de dezembro. #feedmma
— Raphael Marinho (@raphamarinho) August 19, 2021
Practice makes perfect:
I’m typically all about supporting the fighters, but I know a lot of athletes at the highest level who manage not to spend anywhere close to $200k on camps, so this is pretty crazy to me.
?”My whole fight purse was gone. Show and win for this fight.” — @MieshaTate explains to @RyanMcKinnell how “at least 98%” of her purse went towards expenses for her #UFCVegas31 comeback fight
?????????? pic.twitter.com/ZqUj4AvpBn
— MMA on SiriusXM (@MMAonSiriusXM) August 19, 2021
Reminder: Khabib Nurmagomedov is not a man to be messed with.
Teruto Ishihara, Kungfu master!
Slips, rips, and KO clips
Teenage amateurs are landing Suloev Stretches over in Kazakhstan — is it a wonder their athletes are doing well inside the Octagon?
Have you seen a kneebar like this?
Kazakhstan’s Yersultan Shakenbay moves onto the Jr Strawweight final after defeating Russia’s Mukumov. #2021MMAEuros pic.twitter.com/y6dt1Ilb9u
— IMMAF (@IMMAFed) August 19, 2021
Vinc Pichel is among the many talented Lightweights who got lost in the mix of a talent-rich division.
Jump the back, sink the choke:
There is a new AFC Flyweight KING! Congratulations to Hunter Hickman on a fantastic performance in the #AFC160 main event! #andnew pic.twitter.com/Zq3Esvyyeo
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) August 19, 2021
Random Land
I thought this graphic comparing latitudes across the Atlantic was neat!
Midnight Music: A cut of druggy ‘90s alternative rock!
Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.