Until recently, Young (11-1) had been with Bellator, going back to Bellator 171 in 2017. He went 6-1 in the promotion, suffering his first professional loss in his last fight, against Julius Anglickas, back in 2019.

He won’t let his first loss and the loss of his zero on his record deter him from his goal.

“You only get paid half your money when you lose — never excited to lose that zero, but that being said, sh*t happens,” Young said during the PFL 2 media day on Monday. “I’m in a great position to show my full skillset; I needed surgery after that fight, that’s neither here nor there. The kid fought a good fight to beat me, but I wasn’t at my 100% — I know that in my heart, so the loss doesn’t bother me, and I know what I’m capable of.”

Young was originally matched up with Smealinho Rama, but earlier this month, it was revealed that Rama had to withdraw from the tournament and was replaced by Magalhaes.

It is well known that Magalhaes is one of the best grapplers in the world. Young has nine submission wins himself, but he is planning on exposing his opponent in other areas. After being asked if he plans to get the submission win this Thursday, Young made it clear he has other ideas.

“Absolutely not. I’m going to show different skill sets in this fight, and, uh, Vinny would love for me to try and submit him but, he is absolute hot garbage in other areas of the game, and we’re gonna show that come Thursday.”

Watch the full PFL 2 2021 media day interview with Jordan Young above. The event takes place this Thursday, April 29, airing live on ESPN 2/ESPN+.

The post PFL 2: Jordan Young Will Show Vinny Magalhaes Is “Hot Garbage” Outside of Grappling appeared first on Cageside Press.

Vinny Magalhaes was a finalist in last year’s light heavyweight tournament, making the Brazilian a favorite to go all the way in the PFL’s 2019 season. His playoff run started against Rashid Yusupov, the sixth seed to Magalhaes’ third seed.

While Magalhaes might have been the favorite, no one gave Rashid Yusupov the memo. He’d bring the Brazilian’s playoff run to a screeching halt early in the two-round fight.

Magalhaes opened with a high kick that was blocked by Yusupov. The Brazilian would go back to that high kick again moments later. Yusupov held center, keeping Magalhaes on the outside. Yusupov would work in his own kicks, and look to get some combos going, though Magalhaes, known for his ground game, showed considerable power on the feet as well. However, it was Yusupov scoring the knockout blow moments later. A right uppercut came up the middle, followed by a heavy left hand. Vinny Magalhaes immediately went crashing to the mat, marking the end of his playoff journey.

OUT OF NOWHERE! 💣💣

Rashid Yusupov is moving on to the Light Heavyweight Semifinals later tonight on ESPN2. #PFLPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/BDkKR5x0bZ

— PFL (@PFLMMA) October 31, 2019

The number six seed Yusupov would advance to meet seventh seeded Jordan Johnson in semifinal action later in the evening.

Official Result: Rashid Yusupov def. Vinny Magalhaes by knockout, Round 1, 2:46

The post PFL 9 2019: Vinny Magalhaes’ Playoff Run Halted Early by Rashid Yusupov appeared first on Cageside Press.

Atlantic City, NJ — Last season in the Professional Fighters League, former UFC athlete Vinny Magalhaes went all the way to the final — only to be stopped by Sean O’Connell. A cool million bucks dangled tantalizingly, then snatched up when Magalhaes’ corner called it a night following the third round.

So you had better believe Magalhaes is extra motivated this year — but the 2019 season started on a sour note. Magalhaes found himself finished via TKO at this year’s PFL 3 show. He bounced back, however, at PFL 6 2019 in Atlantic City, not just getting back in the win column and onto the scoreboards, but into the post season as well.

Which means the BJJ ace’s plan is back on track for the time being. Magalhaes talked about his goals with media outlets including Cageside Press following his arm-bar submission of Rakim Cleveland at PFL 6.

“Since I actually signed with PFL, not [just] for this year,” he started, “I set a goal, a long term goal. It’s not just win one season and retire. My goal is to maybe go three seasons back-to-back, make that million dollars three times, in a row if possible.”

The plan was chugging along nicely last year, until he ran into O’Connell. “I had my first chance, missed the shot.” Then came his loss to Emiliano Sordi back in May. “When I lost the first fight this season, it kind of sucked. It had been a while since I had lost two fights back-to-back. Especially the way it happened, too. Also it’s the first time I’ve been finished in two fights back-to-back.”

For Magalhaes, the finish in his season opener never sat well with him. Still, “even though I don’t agree with the finish, that doesn’t matter. It’s the first time I’ve been finished back-to-back. So it was a little frustrating.”

Magalhaes knew it was time to adjust. “I started to watch my fights. I sat down with my coaches, and I started to look at things, what has gone wrong with my training, my preparation? Not just in the gym, but also like fight day, what have I been doing wrong, what about when I get in the cage?”

“First, I feel like I was overdoing in the locker room,” Magalhaes continued. “I was starting warm-ups one hour before, and go like crazy, like I was getting into fights in the locker room. Then by the time the fight comes, I’m tired. Not an excuse, just it happens. Things I had to keep more under control. It was not the reason I lost those fights, but it’s more of those things, I could fix that, try to make things better.”

Magalhaes also felt his was making poor decisions in the cage. “During the fights too, I am better. It’s not about like bragging or anything, but I am better than any of these guys when it comes to ground game. And I am, it’s just a fact. When it comes to credentials, the way they perform on the ground, I am better than these guys. So why would I perform in a sloppy way? Why would I be spazzing out when I take the fight to the ground? So it’s just like, well, I have to be more patient.”

“If I stay calm, I can display 100% jiu-jitsu, and I’m going to be able to beat these guys,” he continued. “In the previous fights, I was able to get my opponents down, but instead of actually working on like guard pass, control, working the submission patiently, I was throwing punches with no power. So what was I really getting from that? Nothing, I was just getting myself tired, losing control.” When the fight eventually went back to the feet, “now I’m not bringing my A-game anymore.”

Ultimately, “there was a lot of changes I was able to make for this fight, and hopefully we’re going to make this even better for the playoffs.”

One key number was highlighted following Vinny Magalhaes win over Cleveland in Atlantic City: Five. Five first round finishes, all five of which came in under two minutes. That’s an impressive  feat by the submission ace. The motivating factor of the PFL’s points system is a big part of that.

And at PFL 6, “for this it was a lot more important for me to get the first round or second round finish. That was my goal, I got to get here today and get that first round or second round finish.” Because, Magalhaes explained, “I felt like with five or six points, I was guaranteed to qualify for the playoffs. I was not thinking of three points, four points. I was thinking about five and six, it’s guaranteed.”

Magalhaes’ prediction proved accurate, and now, he’ll face Rashid Yusupov in October, at home in Las Vegas. Another chance for the talented Brazilian to score a million bucks.

Watch the full PFL 6 2019 post-fight press scrum with Vinny Magalhaes above!

The post Vinny Magalhaes Explains Changes That Got Him Back on Track in PFL 2019 Season appeared first on Cageside Press.

The PFL’s final regular season show has come and gone, and the playoff brackets are set for the big men. PFL 6 2019 saw heavyweight and light heavyweights throw down, with a number of big finishes. Alex Nicholson, after losing his first fight of the season to Francimar Barosso, was among the big winners, knocking out Zeke Tuinei-Wily in the first round. That sets up a rematch with Barosso in the post season.

Vinny Magalhaes also got back in the win column in a big way, and into the post-season. Magalheas submitted Rakim Cleveland in just under two minutes to earn six points, and ensure he’ll have a shot at a million dollars, should he make it through the playoffs.

Full results and standings are below, as well as a gallery of highlights from PFL 2019 Week 6!

PFL 6 2019 Results:

Main Card (ESPN+)

Heavyweight: Jared Rosholt def. Satoshi Ishii by unanimous decision decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Light Heavyweight: Vinny Magalhaes def. Rashid Cleveland by submission (arm-bar), Round 1, 1:56
Light Heavyweight: Viktor Nemkov def. Rashid Yusupov by unanimous decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Heavyweight: Ali Isaev def. Carl Seumanutafa by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Light Heavyweight: Maxim Grishin def. Mikhail Mokhnatkin by knockout, Round 1, 0:48
Heavyweight: Muhammed DeReese def. Valdrin Istrefi by TKO, Round 1, 2:06
Bantamweight: Umar Nurmagomedov def. Sidemar Honorio by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Heavyweight: Francimar Barroso def. Ben Edwards by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Preliminary Card (ESPN2)

Heavyweight: Denis Goltsov def. Kelvin Tiller by submission (neck crack), Round 2, 3:40
Light Heavyweight: Emiliano Sordi def. Bozigit Ataev by knockout, Round 1, 1:22
Heavyweight: Alex Nicholson def. Zeke Tuinei-Wily by TKO, Round 1, 3:07
Light Heavyweight: Jordan Johnson def. Sigi Pesaleli by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

The post PFL 6 2019: Photo Highlights from Atlantic City appeared first on Cageside Press.

Vinny Magalhaes was the favorite in last year’s light heavyweight tournament, right up until he ran into Sean O’Connell. In 2019, things went from bad to worse, as Magalhaes was finished in his season opener against Emiliano Sordi. Thursday night in Atlantic City, NJ, at PFL 6 2019, it was do or die for Magalhaes against Rakim Cleveland. The bout was a rematch from the pair’s post-season meeting last year.

It was a key fight for Magalhaes, who really was one of the best light heavyweights in the PFL. He made the most of things on Thursday, however, in a fight that could not have gone better for the BJJ expert.

The pair started out swinging. Magalhaes fired a high kick. He tried to grab a leg in a risky move, but was forced to let it go, lest he open himself up to a knockout blow. Another high kick by Vinny followed. Magalhaes would eventually secure the takedown, and work to isolate an arm, then move to side control. From there, he expertly set up an arm-bar, wrenching the limb back. Cleveland was forced to tap, and Magalhaes had a much-needed six points!

Vinny Magalhaes def. Rashid Cleveland by submission (arm-bar), Round 1, 1:56

The post PFL 6 2019 Results: Vinny Magalhaes Forces Rakim Cleveland to Tap to Arm-Bar appeared first on Cageside Press.

The sixth and final show of the PFL 2019 regular season went down Thursday night at the Oceans Resort and Casino in Atlantic City, NJ. Featuring the second fights for both light heavyweights and heavyweights, names like Satoshi Ishii and Kelvin Tiller would loom large at heavyweight. Vinny Magalhaes and Maxim Grishin were among the names at light heavyweight, meanwhile. And as an added bonus, the return of Umar Nurmagoemdov was also set, in a bantamweight clash with Sidemar Honorio. A cousin of UFC champ Khabib, the undefeated Umar is a hot prospect at the moment, with a 10-0 record.

PFL 6 2019 Results:

Main Card (ESPN+)

Heavyweight: Jared Rosholt def. Satoshi Ishii by unanimous decision decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Light Heavyweight: Vinny Magalhaes def. Rashid Cleveland by submission (arm-bar), Round 1, 1:56
Light Heavyweight: Viktor Nemkov def. Rashid Yusupov by unanimous decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Heavyweight: Ali Isaev def. Carl Seumanutafa by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Light Heavyweight: Maxim Grishin def. Mikhail Mokhnatkin by knockout, Round 1, 0:48
Heavyweight: Muhammed DeReese def. Valdrin Istrefi by TKO, Round 1, 2:06
Bantamweight: Umar Nurmagomedov def. Sidemar Honorio by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Heavyweight: Francimar Barroso def. Ben Edwards by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Preliminary Card (ESPN2)

Heavyweight: Denis Goltsov def. Kelvin Tiller by submission (neck crack), Round 2, 3:40
Light Heavyweight: Emiliano Sordi def. Bozigit Ataev by knockout, Round 1, 1:22
Heavyweight: Alex Nicholson def. Zeke Tuinei-Wily by TKO, Round 1, 3:07
Light Heavyweight: Jordan Johnson def. Sigi Pesaleli by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

The post PFL 6 2019 — Light Heavyweights and Heavyweights: Live Results and Standings appeared first on Cageside Press.

The official weigh-in for PFL 6, 2019 edition took place today in Atlantic City, NJ. And continuing a recent trend for the Professional Fighters League, yet another athlete missed at the scales. This time out, it was former UFC fighter Ronny Markes, whose fight with Dan Spohn was pulled from the event as a result.

Spohn now gets the walkover win, and three points. Whether that’s enough to make it into the post-season won’t be known until Thursday night. Meanwhile, with no points in the regular season, Markes is effectively done, barring some miracle.

“Our heavyweights and light heavyweights had the highest early stoppage rates last season, and with playoff spots on the line, I expect that trend to continue,” said Ray Sefo, President of Fighter Operations of the PFL in a press release Wednesday. “With our format, nobody is out of contention, every fight matters, every round counts. A first-round win for our fighters with 0 points could mean a spot in the Playoffs. Once you’re in the Playoffs, anything can happen. You’re one step closer to a million dollars, and that drama will unfold tomorrow night.”

The PFL 6 2019 card goes down at the Oceans Resort and Casino on Thursday, August 8. The action starts on ESPN 2, which will air the preliminary card starting at 8PM. The main card airs on ESPN+

PFL 6 2019 Weigh-In Results:

Main Card

Heavyweight: Satoshi Ishii (240.6) vs. Jared Rosholt (257.0)
Light Heavyweight: Vinny Magalhaes (205.2) vs. Rakim Cleveland (204.8)
Light Heavyweight: Rashid Yusupov (206) vs. Viktor Nemkov (205.6)
Heavyweight: Ali Isaev (263.2) vs. Carl Seumanutafa (265.2)
Light Heavyweight: Maxim Grishin (205.8) vs. Mikhail Mokhnatkin (205.6)
Heavyweight: Valdrin Istrevi (244.4) vs. Muhammed DeReese (245.6)
Bantamweight: Umar Nurmagomedov (135.8) vs. Sedico Honorio (135.4)
Heavyweight: Francimar Barroso (244.8) vs. Ben Edwards (264.2)

Preliminary Card

Heavyweight: Kelvin Tiller (265.0) vs. Denis Gotsov (241.2)
Light Heavyweight: Bozigit Ataev (205.6) vs. Emiliano Sordi (205.8)
Heavyweight: Alex Nicholson (238.2) vs. Zeke Tuinei-Wily (265.6)
Light Heavyweight: Jordan Johnson (205.8) vs Joe Pesaleli (204.8)

The post PFL 6 2019 Weigh-In Results: Ronny Markes Misses Weight appeared first on Cageside Press.

Emiliano Sordi was the fifth seed in last year’s PFL tournament after earning a first-round stoppage in his lone regular-season appearance. Sordi was then knocked out in the first round of the tournament. The Argentinian has made appearances in both Bellator and Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series with a 17-8 record that includes 12 knockouts and five submissions.

Vinny Magalhaes, an ADCC grappling world champion, is coming off a brilliant 2018 season in PFL. Magalhaes earned the maximum 12 points with a first-round KO and a first-round submission, then reached the finals two first-round kimuras on the same night. His run was stopped by champion and current broadcaster Sean O’Connell. Magalhaes was a finalist on the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter, going 3-0 on the show before losing to Ryan Bader in the finals. Overall, the Brazilian went 1-4 across two UFC stints, winning the M-1 light heavyweight title in between.

Emiliano Sordi deflected a head kick, then knocked down Vinny Magalhaes with a right hand. Sordi, of course, couldn’t engage with his grounded opponent due to the Brazilian’s mastery of jiu-jitsu. Magalhaes shot for a takedown, took some punishment, then slammed Sordi down. Impressively, Sordi returned to his feet, and swept Magalhaes when he attempted another takedown. Sordi was firing heavy combinations that Magalhaes was trying to answer, but there was just too much coming his way. The Argentian was simply overwhelming Magalhaes on the feet. Magalhaes did somehow survive the punishment, making it to the second round.

BIG knockdown by @emilianosordi in the opening frame! Round 2 is underway on @ESPN+. #PFL3 https://t.co/m7CFd6bsXK pic.twitter.com/A3ZcwYhZof

— PFL (@PFLMMA) June 7, 2019

Magalhaes threw a superman punch, but was simply thrown aside by Sordi. Magalhaes found his back to the fence again, taking abuse from Sordi. He shot for a desperation takedown but Sordi brushed him off like an insect. Emiliano Sordi hit Magalhaes with a clean five-punch combination, and Dan Miragliotta had seen enough, stopping the fight on the feet.

OVERWHELMING PERFORMANCE! “He-Man” @EmilianoSordi puts the entire light heavyweight division on notice with a huge win 2nd round TKO over Vinny Magalhaes and secures 5 points. #PFL3 pic.twitter.com/87IZ11ALDu

— PFL (@PFLMMA) June 7, 2019

Emiliano Sordi def. Vinny Magalhaes by TKO (Punches) in Round 2 (2:45)

Check out the rest of the results from PFL 3 2019 here!

The post PFL 3 2019 Results: Emiliano Sordi Batters Vinny Magalhaes appeared first on Cageside Press.

The Professional Fighers League (PFL) recently secured a broadcast deal with ESPN, securing its spot on the network and its streaming service ESPN+ for the next two years. Now, the league, with its merit-based format, has announced the first names for the coming season. Not surprisingly, there were no surprises. That is, the first batch of names for PFL 2019 were the returning champions, plus a few challengers.

The news was delivered in a press release from the promotion on Tuesday. Among the names heading back for a second go is middleweight champion Louis Taylor. However, with the 185lb division being eliminated to make way for women’s lightweight, Taylor will drop to welterweight and hunt for a second title — which would be a first for the PFL.

Sean O’Connell, the league’s inaugural light heavyweight champion, will not return, as he rode off into the sunset following his win last year. At least, he won’t return to the cage — O’Connell is likely to pop up in the broadcast booth.

Also back, Lance Palmer (Featherweight), Natan Schulte (Lightweight), Magomed Magomedkerimov (Welterweight), and Philipe Lins (Heavyweight). All will look to repeat as champions. And in the aforementioned women’s lightweight division, Olympian Kayla Harrison will star.

Non-champions returning to the PFL in 2019 include Steven Siler, (Featherweight), Rashid Magomedov (Lightweight), Ray Cooper III (Welterweight) and Vinny Magalhaes (Light Heavyweight). All made it to the finals last year.

“We are excited to announce our returning PFL champions and other great athletes who competed in the League last season. The 2019 PFL Roster Selection Process has been incredibly competitive, as the best MMA fighters from around the world want to join the PFL, especially now that we’ve established the Regular Season, Playoffs and Championship format and will be distributed Thursday nights on ESPN this May,” said Ray Sefo, President, PFL Fighter Operations. “The PFL’s goal is to continually elevate our fighter roster and provide fans with the best MMA action in the world. Over the coming weeks, we’ll continue to unveil the sport’s top new and returning fighters who will be joining the PFL for the 2019 season.”

The post PFL 2019 Roster Selection Begins With Five Returning Champs, Taylor Looks for Second Title appeared first on Cageside Press.

Sean O’Connell was 1-1 in the regular season for PFL, earning him a sixth seed in the tournament. At PFL 9, O’Connell won two fights to earn him a spot in the finals. Last year, he was mulling retirement, and now he’s on the brink of being a millionaire.

Sean O’Connell started throwing bombs right away that forced Magalhaes to start working his submission game. Magalhaes went for a leg, but O’Connell defended well and worked his way back to the feet. O’Connell caught Magalhaes with haymakers, and Magalhaes dove in for a desperation takedown. O’Connell stuffed the takedown but it gave Magalhaes enough of a window to look for an armbar. O’Connell escaped again, but ate some shots on the feet before another submission attempt by Magalhaes. The heel hook wasn’t there again and O’Connell started taking over as time expired.

Magalhaes started the second round firing away, but a haymaker from O’Connell rocked the Brazilian. Magalhaes started shooting for desperation takedowns, but O’Connell repeatedly separated and walked away from his grounded opponent. Magalhaes got a hold of a leg once, but O’Connell worked his way out of it and rocked Magalhaes on the feet. O’Connell continued to land bombs and Magalhaes’ only response was to shoot more desperation takedowns. O’Connell stayed on top of Magalhaes in a sprawl position for over a minute to end the round.

Magalhaes landed a head kick to start the round, followed by a combination and another head kick that stumbled O’Connell. He fired back hard and knocked down the Brazilian, but he was able to survive in guard and stand back up. It was all O’Connell now as the fight became a cycle of combinations from O’Connell and desperation takedowns from Magalhaes. Over and over again Magalhaes was rocked and shooting a takedown that had no chance. The round came to a close with Magalhaes on his back, and the referee called the fight in between rounds.

Sean O’Connell decided to retire on top with a daughter on the way. A storybook ending to an entertaining career.

Sean O’Connell def. Vinny Magalhaes by TKO (Corner Stoppage) in Round 3 (5:00)

The post PFL 11 Results: Sean O’Connell Batters Vinny Magalhaes, Retires on Top appeared first on Cageside Press.