Complete PFL 1 results
The PFL debuts tonight at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater in New York City. The main card is broadcast on NBCSN while the early fights stream on Facebook.
The Professional Fighters League debuted tonight at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater in New York City. The main card was broadcast on NBCSN while the early fights streamed on Facebook.
The endlessly troubled World Series of Fighting was acquired by a remarkable investor group, and rebranded as PFL. The new owners include Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards owner Ted Leonsis, and the family of Washington Nationals owner Ted Lerner. The rebranding is not lipstick on a pig, it is a reimagining of mixed martial arts.
The PFL have established a season, and contracted 72 fighters in six weight divisions. They will fight in a single-elimination tournament, with the winner in each division receiving $1,000,000. The two losers in the quarterfinals will each make $50,000, and the loser in the finals will make $200,000. The money has attracted a deep talent pool.
The 8 fighter playoff round is preceded by a two-event regular season, during which fighters qualify by earning points. Tournament seeding is determined by points totals:
Win – 3 points
Draw – 1 point
Loss – 0 points
Round 1 finish – 3 extra points
Round 2 finish – 2 extra points
Round 3 finish – 1 extra point
Decision – 0 extra points
Thus fighters are motivated in the first two events to press for the finish.
The main event featured 17-0 NY native Andre Harrison vs. Kazakh-Chinese former UFC fighter Jumabieke Tuerxun, at featherweight. The co-main also featured 145-pound fighters – NCAA Div I star Lance Palmer vs. 18-1 Russian invader Bekbulat Magomedov.
Main Card (Live on NBC Sports, 9:00 PM EST)
-Andre Harrison defeated Jumabieke Tuerxun by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
-Lance Palmer defeated Bekbulat Magomedov by Submission (RNC, Round 2, 3:21)
-Timur Valiev defeated Max Coga by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
-Alex Nicholson defeated Jake Heun by Knockout (Flying Knee, Round 2, 0:58)
Preliminary Bouts (Live on Facebook, 6:15 PM EST)
-Josh Copeland defeated Jack May by TKO (Strikes, Round 1, 4:30 )
-Jared Rosholt defeated Valdrin Istrefi by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
-Nazareno Malegarie defeated Marcos Galvao by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
-Kelvin Tiller defeated Caio Alencar by Knockout (Punch, Round 1, 3:34)
-Steven Siler defeated Magomed Idrisov by Submission (Triangle Choke, Round 1, 4:19)
-Alexandre Almeida defeated Lee Coville by Submission (Armbar, Round 1, 1:22)
-Francimar Barroso defeated Daniel Gallemore by TKO (Injury, Round 1, 3:57)
The season is expected to end in December.