On a night full of major upsets at 2021 PFL 1, [autotag]Brendan Loughnane[/autotag] found a way to stand out.
“I am the only one to finish anybody tonight,” Loughnane said, boasting at the post-event news conference Friday night. “I am the only one to finish anybody.”
Indeed, among 10 lightweight and featherweight bouts at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, N.J., nine of them went to the judges’ scorecards but not Loughnane’s. He knocked out UFC alumnus Sheymon Moraes with a brutal first-round flurry to get the win at 2:05 mark and earn six points in his first PFL regular-season appearance at 145 pounds.
“What does that tell you?” Loughnane said. “I came out here tonight, (and) I fought a world-class UFC veteran who’s fought Marlon Moraes, who’s fight Zabit (Magomedsharipov), who’s fought Sodiq Yusuff, and I just went out there and dismantled him, put him away first round.”
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It was a nearly flawless performance for Loughnane, who is now on a six-fight winning streak, including three under the PFL banner. Loughnane signed with the promotion in 2019 after he didn’t receive a UFC contract following his win on “Dana White’s Contender Series.”
Loughnane felt snubbed afterward and immediately made an impact in PFL by winning two one-off fights to close out 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic meant Loughnane waited 16 long months to build on those wins.
With Friday night’s performance putting him squarely atop the featherweight leaderboard, everyone in the division is on notice.
“I told you I’m not a joke,” Loughnane said. “I’m here to stay, I’m here to win this whole tournament, and that’s the truth.”
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