PFL lightweight Elvin Espinoza is entering his third fight with the promotion this Friday, and at least this time around, he got proper notice.
That wasn’t the case back in August of last year. Espinoza, who earned a win under the PFL banner in 2021, wasn’t part of the regular season either year. Nor was he part of the Challenger Series last year. Instead, he was told to stay ready as the months ticked by.
“I never knew when I was going to get a fight,” Espinoza (7-0) told Cageside Press ahead of his return at PFL Challenger Series 4 this Friday. Back in the summer, he learned he would be fighting at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden last August— through the media.
“I was just staying ready, and I found out on MMA Junkie that I had an opponent. I’m like ‘oh look I’m fighting.’ Nobody told me, except I went on MMA Junkie. ‘Oh I guess I am fighting.'”
Regardless of how he found out, Espinoza notched yet another win, over Corey Jackson. He now returns as part of the Challenger Series against Damir Ferhatbegović — and wants to keep busy moving forward.
“I’m hoping at least to fight three or four times this year. That was my plan, I thought I’d be fighting frequently last year, but I never got a chance to fight, except last August. That year, 2022, I was always staying ready, because I didn’t know when I was going to fight. I was just waiting for a call.”
As far as his match-up with the “Bosnian Barn Cat” is concerned, “it’s a good match-up,” Espinoza told us. “He’s a great fighter. I’m excited, let’s see where it goes. It’s a banger, that’s for sure.”
On paper, the fight pairs up two fighters who like to come forward, and that’s how Espinoza sees it as well. “I feel like whoever is going to stick to their game plan is the one that’s going to come out on top. We’re both very, come-forward. I’m excited, I can’t really say much, but I’m excited for this.”
Asked what a PFL contract would mean to him, Espinoza replied by saying that “it would mean a lot, because I’m ready to get that million.”
Elvin Espinoza faces Damir Ferhatbegovic at the PFL Challenger Series 2023 Week 4 on Friday, February 17, 2023 in Orlando, FL.
