The 2022 PFL playoffs are here!
Tonight (Aug. 5) at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York, we will see the light heavyweight and lightweight semifinals. It’s a straightforward deal where the semifinal winners face off against each other in October’s final, so there’s nothing else to really explain.
Headlining this card is a rematch between former WEC and UFC champion Anthony Pettis and Stevie Ray, who submitted Pettis in their regular season matchup. The way the seeding worked out, we’re getting an immediate rematch between these two. Winner of this one takes on the winner of Olivier Aubin-Mercier and Alexander Martinez.
At light heavyweight, Omari Akhmedov was due to face 2021 champion Antonio Carlos Junior, but ACJ is out injured and has been replaced by Josh Silveira, who was the 5th seed and just missed out on a playoff spot initially. On the other side of the bracket, Rob Wilkinson takes on Delan Monte.
There are also prelims and postlims, with the prelims meant for qualifying for the 2023 season, while the postlims are for qualifying for the PFL Challenger Series.
The prelims begin at 6 PM ET on ESPN+ and followed by the main card at 7 PM ET on ESPN and ESPN+, capped off by the postlims at 9 PM ET on ESPN+. International viewers can find their outlet here.
Full card below:
Tournament Semifinals Main Card (ESPN/ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET)
Anthony Pettis vs. Stevie Ray
Omari Akhmedov def. Josh Silveira by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Olivier Aubin-Mercier def. Alexander Martinez by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
Rob Wilkinson def. Delan Monte by KO (knee) at 1:37 of Round 1
Season Qualifier Prelims (ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET)
Itso Babulaidze def. Mahmoud Sebie by TKO (uppercut and punches) at 4:30 of Round 1
Marthin Hamlet def. Cory Hendricks by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Postlim Challenger Series Qualifiers (ESPN+ at 9 p.m. ET)
Brahyan Zurcher vs. Ricardo Jimenez
Elvin Espinosa vs. Corey Jackson
Lucas Barbosa vs. Elmar Umarov
Alexei Pergande vs. Elvis Lebron Quiles