“It was a great fight. He’s a tough opponent, but unfortunately he happened to face me,” Musaev told Cageside Press through a translator at his post-fight scrum.

“Well he had to pay for that.”

Musaev (17-0-1) landed a spinning back kick to Storley’s body which proved to be the beginning of the end for his opponent.

“That one was part of the game. I didn’t know when, but I knew that I definitely wanted to try this and that was the perfect opportunity. It played well,” he said.

Putting up 5 points up on the board Musaev is keeping up with two other featherweights above him who scored first round finishes on Friday night. If he could get another finish against his next opponent it could put him at the top of the standings.

“It really depends on the league how they’re going to match us up. That’s going to be the case,” said Musaev.

“I’m sorry to disappoint his fans, but hey maybe next time he’ll get a win.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Shamil Musaev above.

The post Shamil Musaev: “Sorry to disappoint his fans” With Storley Win at PFL 3 appeared first on Cageside Press.

“He left us, but in leaving us he left me very ready, ready for these moments. Ready to make him proud, and ready to conquer the world,” Braga told Cageside Press through a translator at his post-fight scrum.

“That’s what I’m here to do.”

Diego Braga was was murdered by suspected drug traffickers while searching for a stolen motorcycle. The 44-year-old was the cornerstone of Gabriel’s fight camp, and a very close confidant.

Braga (13-1) was one of only two featherweights to finish their fights and add 6 points on the board on Friday night.

“I’m here to be a champion. Last year I feel like I conquered a lot of space within the organization. I proved my worth, but this year I’m here to be champion. That’s what I’m going to do,” he said.

Now that he’s on the board and past this fight Braga will wait to see who he gets matched up with in the next round.

“I train to fight anybody and everybody. I’d fight all nine of them if I could,” he said.

“Line them up.”

The post Gabriel Braga Speaks On First Fight Following Father’s Death appeared first on Cageside Press.

“That was the first fight. The season picks up from here. Whoever can stay healthy, whoever can have the strong mind, and keep going,” Kamaka told Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“I don’t have bad weight cuts. I don’t need too much time to rest. I heal my body up good and I’m a student of the game. The tournament picks up now.”

Kamaka (13-5-1) was one of the millions who watched UFC lightweight Max Holloway point to the ground at UFC 300. What ensued was a brawl in the middle of the cage against Justin Gaethje that Holloway won by KO.

Kamaka was asked at media day if he’d try that, but on fight night it was not to be.

“I told you. Even if I had the opportunity he would shoot, and that’s what happened. He did it before I could even point to the ground,” Kamaka said with a smirk.

Even with the win Kamaka wasn’t happy with how it went down.

“I’m actually disappointed. I made fight closer than it had to be. I was seeing everything in there. He wasn’t nothing special at all,” he said.

“I broke him. I have a tendency of doing that like when I’m up I kind of lead him back into the fight. I seen he was slowly breaking and I kind of was letting him trying to make it a scrap. That’s on me.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Kai Kamaka above.

The post Kai Kamaka Denied His Holloway Moment, Ready For Tournament appeared first on Cageside Press.

“That was my comeback fight. I had ACL surgery right after the (Patricio) Pitbull fight,” Borics told Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“Most of the people they don’t know I fought without ACL against Pitbull.”

Borics (19-2) ended up having to wait 18 months for another chance to fight in the cage.

“I couldn’t wait to get back in the cage and perform. It wasn’t my best performance, but I fought hard. Enrique is a really tough guy. The cage was so slippery I couldn’t kick, but I am happy I am back. Excited about my new chapter in my career. It’s the second part of my career,” Borics said.

Borics is one of the many fighters that made the move to PFL following the merger with Bellator in 2023. He’s fought for the Bellator featherweight title before and now enters a different kind of tournament with $1 million prize attached to it.

“I’m really thankful for PFL. I had a long layoff so I want to be active and this tournament is perfect for me,” he said.

“I’m excited about this new chapter.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Adam Borics above.

The post Adam Borics Details Long Layoff Due To ACL Surgery appeared first on Cageside Press.

“To be honest I’m not truly happy with my performance,” Khizriev told Cageside Press through a translator at his post-fight scrum.

“A win is a win, but I just didn’t feel like I was fully there. My normal level of energy was not present, and I think it’s partially because of Ramadan. Normally I don’t have problem with weight cutting, and this time I had a little problem getting there.”

Khizriev (15-0) normally has to deal with opponents trying to stay on the feet in order to avoid his grappling. Johns opted to grapple with the Russian.

“No (I was) not surprised by his wrestling. As a matter of fact I felt like that’s actually the only chance he had. With striking I think he realized he doesn’t have a chance with me. I’m not really happy with the way I was on the ground today,” he said.

“I know he has wrestling. He fought cool guys like (Aljamain) Sterling.”

With the way the point system works during the regular season it’s possible Khizriev will need a first round finish his next fight out.

“Overall it wasn’t the best performance. I wanted to finish the first round here as well. Next one I’ll do my best to finish up by the first round,” said Khizriev.

“It was a tough guy.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Timur Khizriev above.

The post Timur Khizriev Disappointed With His Performance appeared first on Cageside Press.

“Incomplete. I’ve still got the rest of the season to go. There was a good win, but I’m just thinking about the next leg of competition,” Madge told Cageside Press among other media at his post-fight scrum.

Madge (11-4-1) threw down with Ward for a few seconds before the fight got into the grappling and ‘Magic Man’ got the win by rear-naked choked.

“I think realistically he was trying to like intimidate me or try to get into my head. I expected him to try and take me down. I knew like he was going to try to put forward pressure with me and try and like get a quick knockout,” Madge said.

“Soon as he figured that he couldn’t do that he was going to try and take me down. I was prepared to grappled with him 15 minutes if we had to.”

One win down, 6 points scored, and Madge sees the division as wide open going into the next part of the season.

“There’s a lot of tough competition. I think this is one of the most stacked welterweight divisions that they have been,” he said.

“I feel like the stars are aligning for me. It’s been a rough two years. I think this could be my year.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Don Madge above.

The post Don Madge Ready For Next Leg Of PFL 170 Tournament appeared first on Cageside Press.

Welterweights Andrey Koreshkov, Magomed Umalatov, Logan Storley, Shamil Musaev, Goiti Yamauchi, Neiman Gracie, Laureano Staropoli, Murad Ramazanov, Don Madge and Brennan Ward look to score the first points of the season.

Featherweights Brendan Loughnane, Pedro Carvalho, Gabriel Braga, Justin Gonzales, Bubba Jenkins, Kai Kamaka, Adam Borics, Enrique Barzola, Timur Khizriev and Brett Johns will attempt to get their footing in the regular season.

First the fighters hit the scales in Chicago on Thursday morning. All of the fighters named above plus 4 alternates weighed-in to get set for the fights on Friday night.

PFL 3: Regular Season 2024 Weigh-In Results

Main Card

Welterweight – Andrey Koreshkov (170.6) vs. Magomed Umalatov (170.3)
Featherweight – Brendan Loughnane (145.8) vs. Pedro Carvalho (145.6)
Welterweight – Logan Storley (170.6) vs. Shamil Musaev (170.8)
Featherweight – Gabriel Braga (145.4) vs. Justin Gonzales (145.4)
Welterweight – Goiti Yamauchi (170.8) vs. Neiman Gracie (170.2)
Featherweight – Bubba Jenkins (145.8) vs. Kai Kamaka (145.8)
Featherweight – Adam Borics (145.8) vs. Enrique Barzola (146)
Featherweight – Timur Khizriev (146) vs. Brett Johns (145.6)
Welterweight – Laureano Staropoli (175.2) vs. Murad Ramazanov (170.8)
Featherweight Alternates – Tyler Diamond (146) vs. Otto Rodrigues (145.2)
Welterweight Alternates – Romain Debienne (170.4) vs. Thad Jean (170.8)

PFL 3: Regular Season 2024 takes place in Chicago, IL on Friday April 19.

Main card kicks off at 6:30pmPT/9:30pmET
Early card kicks off at 4pmPT/7pmET

The post PFL 3: Regular Season 2024 Weigh-In Results appeared first on Cageside Press.

“On top of the world, happy to be back, happy to see you guys. Happy to see all the back staff, and ready to have some fun on Friday night,” Loughnane told Cageside Press on Wednesday.

“A lots changed, but it hasn’t really. It’s still a tournament. We still got four dates to attend to. We still got a great run organization so for me it doesn’t matter who the other 9 guys are. It’s just about being the best version of myself, and painting a picture on Friday night.”

Loughnane (27-5) got an early exit from last season’s tournament when he lost to Jesus Pinedo in June. It gave the PFL veteran an early out, but also a lot of time to recover.

“I needed that time off. I didn’t know I needed it as much as I actually needed it. I’ve been stuck in this tumble dryer for three years now where you don’t really get any time off and you’re just fighting all the time. To go out early last season and kind of go and lick my wounds, get better, have a bit of time off with my friends and family, and now come back here refreshed and reinvigorated,” he said.

This Friday night he gets Carvalho who comes over to PFL as part of the Bellator purchase.

“Well he is game,” he said.

“Exactly. He’s game. He’s going to come and fight me. That’s what makes it exciting.”

Watch the entire media day scrum with Brendan Loughnane above. He takes on Pedro Carvalho this Friday night in Chicago.

The post PFL 3’s Brendan Loughnane Expecting “Game” Carvalho appeared first on Cageside Press.

Earlier in the day Jenkins had told reporters that there was a “difference between Kai Boy and Bad Man.”

“I mean that’s cool…that’s whatever,” Kamaka told Cageside Press on Wednesday.

“I’m going to punch his face, make him wrestle, make him do what he does. If I make him wrestle that means he’s uncomfortable.”

Kamaka (12-5-1) is making the move from Bellator to PFL following the promotions merging in 2023.

“I think I’m used to this part of switching promotions, but this one is not as weird because of the transition of Bellator getting acquired by PFL. I’m excited to just get right onto the next guy, get booked right away, have a landscape of where you can be if you keep winning,” Kamaka said.

One of Kamaka’s friends, former UFC featherweight Max Holloway, put Hawaii on the map once again at UFC 300 where he knocked Justin Gaethje out with one second left in the fight to become the new BMF champ.

With 10 seconds left in the fight Holloway pointed to the ground and the two stood and threw until the Hawaiian landed a heavy right hook and put Gaethje to sleep.

“They obviously didn’t see Max do that against Ricardo Lamas. That was his signature move, but he already did that,” he said.

Asked if he would like to have a moment like that at PFL 3 his answer wasn’t very encouraging.

“I would do that to Bubba Jenkins, but I know he wouldn’t oblige,” he said.

“Let’s be real. If I point to the ground he’s going to shoot. Probably from the beginning. I would love have that kind of moment, but he ain’t going to give it to me.”

Watch the entire media day scrum with Kai Kamaka above. He takes on Bubba Jenkins at PFL 3 on Friday night.

The post Kai Kamaka Doubts Jenkins Let’s Him Have A Holloway Moment appeared first on Cageside Press.

“It’s very different house now. Really happy to be here again, and it’s a different name, but I see same faces,” Gracie told Cageside Press on Wednesday.

“It’s great to be here.”

For Gracie (12-4) tournaments are nothing new. The welterweight took part in a tournament in Bellator, and welcomes a chance to enter another one, this time in PFL.

“I love tournaments man. It’s great, and I wish all the fights would be only one night, but we cannot do this anymore. Got to wait a couple months to finish this,” Gracie said.

At PFL 3: Regular Season 2024 he will face a familiar foe in Yamauchi. The two squared off at Bellator 286 in August of 2022. Gracie suffered a TKO loss that night.

“It’s been a while. I don’t see him fighting and it’s been a while (since I fought) so we’re going to have to figure (it) out on Friday night,” he said.

Years removed from his last tournament Gracie has plenty of motivation to win the million dollar prize this time around.

“What’s different now is that now I have two kids,” Gracie said with a smile.

“The million dollars will definitely make a difference now.”

Watch the entire media day scrum with Neiman Gracie above. He takes on Goiti Yamauchi on Friday night.

The post Neiman Gracie Grateful For Another Shot At Million Dollar Prize appeared first on Cageside Press.