PFL champions Brendan Loughnane and Rob Wilkinson emerged victorious in the first PFL card of the year, with Loughnane defeating Marlon Moraes and Wilkinson besting Thiago Santos.
2022 PFL champions Brendan Loughnane and Rob Wilkinson emerged victorious in the first PFL card of the year. The PFL began its 2023 regular season with featherweights and light heavyweights competing on Saturday night in Las Vegas. In the main event, Loughnane’s leg kicks proved to be too much for former UFC title contender Marlon Moraes. Moraes entered the bout on a five-fight losing streak, all by knockout, but appeared comfortable on the feet in the opening round. However, the tide began to turn when Loughnane’s kicks started to damage Moraes’ right leg.
Moraes answered the bell for round two despite a possible injury and charged forward, throwing punches and kicks in search of a Hail Mary knockout. Nevertheless, Loughnane eventually landed another brutal leg kick that dropped Moraes one final time. In the co-main event, Wilkinson, the light heavyweight champion in the PFL with four consecutive knockouts in 2023, faced off against former UFC title contender Thiago Santos. Wilkinson wanted no part of “Marreta’s” striking and used well-timed takedowns over three rounds to halt Santos’ momentum on the feet and control the action, earning a decision victory.
In the light heavyweight class, former Bellator fighter Will Fleury edged UFC veteran Krzysztof Jotko via split decision in a close contest. Movlid Khaybulaev and Bubba Jenkins showcased highly effective offensive wrestling to dominate Ryoji Kudo and Chris Wade, respectively, each earning three points in the featherweight standings. The preliminary portion of the card featured five other regular season bouts, with light heavyweights Marthin Hamlet and Josh Silveira making short work of their opponents with first-round submissions to score six points each and lead the 205-pound race. Alejandro Flores, Gabriel Braga, and Ty Flores also won decisions to secure three points each in their respective weight classes. Click here for complete 2023 PFL 1 results.