The light heavyweight rematch between 2023 PFL light heavyweight champ Impa Kasanganay and finalist Josh Silveira, topping Friday’s PFL Hollywood, did not disappoint.
In an action-filled first round of the semifinal fight, Silveira opened up, forcing the man who beat him for a million dollars a year prior to cover up, having taken some heavy shots. Kasanganay kept his composure during the first-round onslaught, and by the end of the round appeared to have settled down – but it was American Top Team’s Silveira raising his hand and acknowledging the crowd at round’s end. Key in the round was a thunderous knee landed by Silveira that sent Kasanganay down, though it may have been as much a slip as a knockdown.
That was underscored when ref Keith Petersen called for a towel to mop up water on the canvass between rounds.
To start the second, it was Impa going after his opponent, with Silveira responding with a kick. He again took the fight to Kasanganay, firing left and rights, while Kasanganay landed with more accuracy. About a minute in, Silveira took the fight to the fence, looking for a takedown which Kasanganay was able to fight off. Circling out, Kasanganay landed a number of shots, and demonstrated superior hand speed to Silveira.
As the round wore on, the 2023 champ began to land with more frequency, snapping Silveira’s head back at times. Silveira, undeterred, walked forward, hands down; just past the midway mark, he was forced to block a kick that threatened to sneak up over his guard.
Silveira would answer with a combination that produced several connections, backing Kasanganay up- who then fired a knee in the clinch, and eventually reversed. In the final minute, Kasangany went on the attack again, but Silveira connected with a couple of solid left hands, and suddenly, Impa was under fire. At least until he tied things up at the very end of the frame.
If there was any slowing of the action in round three, it wasn’t much. A bit of grappling up against the fence. Yet later in the round, as Kasanganay punched his way in, he caught Silveira with a right hand on the jaw. Silveira survived, and they’d go the distance. Flipping the script, it was Kasanganay landing a big takedown with just 30 seconds remaining in the fight.
For the second time in less than 12 months, Impa Kasanganay and Josh Silveira went the distance- and once again, it was Kasanganay coming away with the victory. That sets him up for his second straight finale, this time against Bellator vet Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov, who defeated Rob Wilkinson on the scorecards earlier in the evening.
Official Result: Impa Kasanganay def. Josh Silveira by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
