In a battle of undefeated welterweights, Magomed Umalatov and Shamil Musaev were two of the top performers on the entire PFL roster during the regular season.
Musaev already handed Murad Ramazanov his first professional loss, knocking the grappler out in Sioux Falls, South Dakota early this year. Umalatov picked up wins over Neiman Gracie, Brennan Ward, and Andrey Koreshkov to earn his way into this million dollar final.
The first round started off at a cautious pace with each fighter knowing how much was at stake for their young careers. Musaev pressed forward taking control of the cage, Umalatov backed towards the cage and ate a straight right hand that snapped his head back. Musaev continued to march forward looking to land powerful punches on the inside. After the first five minutes, Musaev was out to an early lead.
Round two was more competitive with Umalatov taking back the center of the cage in the second half of the round, but Shamil Musaev again landed the more significant strikes. At the start of the third round, Musaev pressed Umalatov to the fence and landed a thunderous left hook that sent the undefeated contender tumbling to the ground. Musaev quickly pounced on Umalatov and finished the fight with ground and pound. This was a statement victory for Musaev who earned finish wins in three of his four performances this season.
After coming into this PFL season as a relative unknown, Musaev has now captured a world title and the biggest cash prize in the sport. “The Silent Assassin” may not be a household name yet, but MMA fans around the world now realize how talented this Welterweight phenom is.
Official Result: Shamil Musaev def. Magomed Umalatov by TKO, Round 3, 1:44
