The Professional Fighters League will return to Belfast, Northern Ireland on April 16, 2026, and on Monday announced the card’s main event.
In lightweight action, recent title challenger Paul “Big News” Hughes (14-3) will face off against New Zealand’s Jay Jay Wilson (11-2).
The card is set to take place at the SSE Arena in Belfast. No other fights have been announced for the event.
Hughes twice dropped decisions to Usman Nurmagomedov in 2025, first a majority decision for the old Bellator MMA lightweight title, then a unanimous decision for the inaugural PFL lightweight championship. In between those bouts, he knocked out Brazilian vet Bruno Miranda.
Hughes’ signing by the PFL was a big one, given the former Cage Warriors star had been coveted by every major promotion. He made an immediate impact upon arrival in the company, defeating A.J. McKee by split decision in his debut.
Now 2-2 with the losses to Nurmagomedov, unquestionably one of the best lightweights in the world, Hughes will look to bounce back against “The Maori Kid.” A former featherweight, Wilson had three weight misses between June of 2020 and August of 2021 that saw him forced to move up a division.
He’s 3-2 since, with wins over Vladimir Tokov, Mansour Barnaoui, and Mads Burnell. His most recent outing saw Wilson lose a decision to Archie Colgan.
More bouts for the PFL Belfast card are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
