Top Reasons to Catch PFL 8

The sprint now begins for lightweight and light heavyweight playoff qualifiers in the Professional Fighters League, where eight men find themselves in the hunt for two seven-figure paydays.

Impa Kasanganay will set out in search of his second straight championship at 205 pounds when his rematch with Joshua Silveira headlines PFL 8 this Friday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. The two men are certainly familiar with one another’s talents. Kasanganay took a unanimous decision from the American Top Team standout in the 2023 PFL light heavyweight final in November. The top-seeded “Tshilobo” has posted two wins in three appearances since, his split decision loss to reigning Bellator MMA champion Johnny Eblen at a PFL Super Fights show offset by back-to-back technical knockouts of Alex Polizzi and Jakob Nedoh during the regular season. On the other side of the equation, Silveira nailed down his postseason berth with an injury-induced TKO of Sadibou Sy in April. He has secured 12 of his 13 career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission.

The other light heavyweight semifinal pits Rob Wilkinson against Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov in a showdown between two contenders who emerged from their respective regular-season campaigns unscathed. The winner advances to face either Kasanganay or Silveira in the $1 million championship. Wilkinson enters the cage on a nine-fight unbeaten streak—8-0 with one no-contest—that includes his run to the PFL light heavyweight title in 2022. A first-round technical knockout of Tom Breese and a split decision over Silveira propelled the 32-year-old Factory X rep into the playoffs as the No. 2 seed. Yagshimuradov stands in his way. The former Absolute Championship Akhmat titleholder has rattled off five consecutive victories. Yagshimuradov last suited up at PFL 5, where he outpointed Simon Biyong to a three-round unanimous decision on June 21.

Meanwhile, battle-hardened veterans toe the line against one another in the first of two lightweight semifinals, where ex-Bellator champion Brent Primus awaits Clay Collard at 155 pounds. The stakes are undeniably high for two men who have grown somewhat long in the tooth, either in terms of age or in relation to tread on the tire. Primus climbs into the cage on the heels of consecutive submission wins over Bruno Miranda and Solomon Renfro, his 2-0 mark during the regular season enough to earn him the No. 1 seed at 155 pounds. The 39-year-old Eugene, Oregon, native holds the rank of black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Fabiano Scherner. Collard, 31, figures to be a challenging hurdle to clear, even if he has lost three of his past four bouts. The well-traveled Ryan Ault protégé rode a second-round technical knockout of Patricky Freire in April to a postseason berth.

The second lightweight semifinal matches the second-seeded Gadzhi Rabadanov with Michael Dufort in a clash between 155-pound hopefuls trying to carve out a niche in the organization. The winner moves on to face either Primus or Collard in the $1 million championship. Rabadanov has spent three-plus years stockpiling momentum and sails toward his most significant opportunity to date with the wind of an eight-fight winning streak at his back. He posted unanimous decisions over Renfro and Elvin Espinoza during the regular season. An Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov disciple, the 31-year-old Russian trains out of the American Kickboxing Academy. Dufort, 30, looks like a potential Cinderella story in the lightweight draw. The H20 MMA-trained Canadian upset former Cage Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder Mads Burnell in April—by submission, no less—and qualified for the postseason despite a unanimous decision defeat to Adam Piccolotti two months later.

In addition to the semifinal showdowns in the light heavyweight and lightweight divisions, here are two other reasons to catch PFL 8:

It Runs in the Family

Biaggio Ali Walsh will take the next step in his development when he puts Brian Stapleton to the test in a three-round lightweight showcase. Walsh—the 25-year-old grandson of the great Muhammad Ali—spent more than a year sharpening his tools on the amateur circuit, resisting calls to hasten his progression. The Xtreme Couture prospect made his pro debut at a PFL Super Fights event on Feb. 24, when he was awarded a unanimous decision over Emmanuel Palacio. Many observers view Stapleton, 27, as the proverbial lamb being led to slaughter, though he can certainly change that perception through whatever unfolds once the cage door closes. Stranger things have happened.

First-Rate Pedigree

Only a select few can hold a candle to Jordan Oliver’s accomplishments as a collegiate wrestler. A four-time NCAA All-American and two-time national champion at Oklahoma State University, he will make his promotional debut opposite Braydon Akeo in a three-round featherweight prelim. Oliver, 34, ranks fifth all-time in career wins (127) at Oklahoma State and established a school record for pins (54) that stands to this day. The Kill Cliff Fight Club representative made his pro debut at Bellator 298 a little more than a year ago and needed just 65 seconds to submit Andrew Triolo with an arm-triangle choke. On the other side of the ledger, Akeo has pieced together a 5-3 record on the regional scene but finds himself on the rebound following a unanimous decision loss to Ricardo Fuentes under the Cage Fury Fighting Championships flag in April.