Las Vegas, NV — With a stunning dismantling of Alex Polizzi on the feet at PFL 2 on Friday, 2023 light heavyweight champ Impa Kasanganay is off to a great start, with six points in the standings.
As it happens, every other winner on the night also picked up six points, so it’s still a very close race. Which may be at least in part why Kasanganay is so bullish on the 2024 light heavyweight field in the PFL.
“At the end of the year you’ll see the belt around my waist. Right now it’s a shout out to the light heavyweight division, because we have the best light heavyweight division in the world currently, and it rivals many of the 85’ers in the UFC and other divisions,” Kasanganay told Cageside Press and other media outlets backstage at The Theater at Virgin Hotels on Friday. “So to be leading from the front, to be champion in this division with other champions as well, I’m honored.”
Coming off a loss in the PFL vs. Bellator Champions card back in February, a close one against Johnny Eblen, it would appear from the outside that Impa had some demons to exercise. Only, that’s not how he would put it.
“There are no demons to exercise, but definitely angels,” said the former UFC athlete, who has been very vocal about his faith over the years. Beyond just staying true to those beliefs, “for me, it’s like, I don’t have to be angry to go ‘kill’ somebody. I’ve got a job to do, and I’ll go do it anyway.”
When it comes to the PFL’s stacked 205lb division, Kasanganay now wants the hardest fights possible.
“A rising tide raises all ships. Everybody saw. Shout out to Rob Wilkinson, Josh [Silveira], Shoeface [Antonio Carlos Junior]. All those guys. They come to fight,” he stated. “These are things we expect, and I pray they keep doing it. I want the most dangerous guy next. I want the killer, I want the guys that are coming to kill, because I’m going to go kill them.”
Watch the full PFL 2 post-fight press conference with Impa Kasanganay above.
