| Harrison vs. Fabian |
Cappelozza vs. Jones |
Pacheco vs. Guardado |
Goltsov vs. Delija |
|
| MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2021: 124-77 |
 Harrison (78%) |
 Cappelozza (66%) |
 Pacheco (84%) |
 Goltsov (74%) |
| John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2021: 127-74 |
Harrison |
 Jones |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Simon Samano @SJSamano 2021: 125-76 |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2021: 123-78  2018 Champion |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2021: 121-80 2020 Champion |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
 Guardado |
Goltsov |
| Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2021: 119-82 2014 Champion |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2021: 118-83 |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Nolan King @mma_kings 2021: 118-83 |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2021: 117-84 |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Guardado |
Goltsov |
| Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2021: 116-85 |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2021: 115-86 |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Brian Garcia @thegoze 2021: 113-88 2017 Champion |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2021: 112-89 |
Harrison |
Cappelozza |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
| Matthew Wells @MrMWells 2021: 46-39 |
Harrison |
Jones |
Pacheco |
Goltsov |
(Editor’s note: Our picks published prior to the news of Larissa Pacheco being forced out after she weighed in two pounds over the limit.)
The PFL returns this week with the second of three straight weeks of semifinal fights.
2021 PFL Playoffs 2 takes place Thursday at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. The main card airs on ESPN2 following prelims on ESPN+.
(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)
In the main event, 2019 women’s lightweight season winner [autotag]Kayla Harrison[/autotag] (10-0) takes on [autotag]Genah Fabian[/autotag] (4-1) in the 2021 semifinals. Harrison won both her regular season fights by first-round stoppage for the maximum 12 points, but is the No. 2 seed because Larissa Pacheco had a shorter total fight time en route to her 12 points. Harrison is one of two unanimous picks from our 13 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers.
In the co-feature, top heavyweight seed [autotag]Bruno Cappelozza[/autotag] (12-5) takes on No. 4 [autotag]Jamelle Jones[/autotag] (12-6). After two first-round knockouts in the regular season, Cappelozza is a heavy 11-2 pick from our staff members.
The top women’s lightweight seed in the other semifinal is [autotag]Larissa Pacheco[/autotag] (15-4), who is coming off two first-round finishes in the regular season. She’s a huge 11-2 pick against No. 4 seed [autotag]Taylor Guardado[/autotag] (2-1).
Our other unanimous pick on the main card is in the second heavyweight semifinal fight between [autotag]Denis Goltsov[/autotag] (27-6) and [autotag]Ante Delija[/autotag] (18-4). Goltsov had finishes of Muhammad DeReese and Brandon Sayles in the regular season.
In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Harrison (78 percent), Cappelozza (66 percent), Pacheco (84 percent) and Goltsov (74 percent) are the choices.
Check out all the picks above.
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