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Check out our staff members’ picks and analysis for PFL Week 2 in Las Vegas, featuring light heavyweights and lightweights.
The PFL continues its 2024 regular season with light heavyweights and lightweights in action at the second of three straight weeks of events.
PFL 2024, Week 2 (ESPN2/ESPN+) takes place Friday at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas.
(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)
Get pick results from our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers, as well as additional analysis, below.
Patricky Freire knows Clay Collard can bring it, but doesn’t believe he’s the most dangerous lightweight in the PFL.
[autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] is days away from his PFL debut, and couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to face new opponents.
At 2024 PFL 2 on April 12 at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas, Freire (25-12 MMA, 0-0 PFL) faces Clay Collard in their first lightweight bouts of the regular season. It will be Freire’s first fight under the PFL banner after the promotion acquired Bellator, where ‘Pitbull’ called home since 2011.
“I fought like close to everybody in Bellator,” Freire told MMA Junkie Radio. “So now it’s different, and now I have new opponents, new challenges. It’s going to be great. I’m very excited to show how ‘Pitbull’ bites.”
Behind his exciting, all-action fight style, Collard (24-12 MMA, 6-4 PFL) has become an attraction during the PFL’s regular and postseasons. Last year he won three straight to reach the championship, but came up short of the title and $1 million prize. Freire is excited to get the opportunity to share the cage with someone like Collard for his first PFL fight since his Bellator days.
“I love the fight against him,” Freire said. “He loves to fight with the hands, me too. He loves to fight like a fireworks, me too. So, it’s going to be great. Don’t blink, guys. I’m very excited to show my power.”
While Freire knows what Collard brings to the table offensively, he doesn’t believe his opponent is the hardest out on this season’s roster.
“No, I don’t think so,” Freire said when asked if Collard is the toughest opponent in the division. “I believe there are more dangerous guys like (Brent) Primus and (Gadzhi Rabadanov). These two guys are very strong guys, very strong fighters. … Let’s see what happens.”
At 38, Freire joining the PFL’s regular season came a surprise to some. The grueling pace of making weight repeatedly over shorter periods of time has turned some of the Bellator veterans away, but Freire is up for the challenge, at least for now.
“I don’t know,” Freire said when asked how much longer he plans to fight.”But now I can do this, I can beat my opponents. I can finish my opponets, so I don’t stop right now. I keep hungry. I’m going to keep fighting this year. I don’t know about next year, but this year, I’m very excited. I’m happy to show my game in PFL.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for PFL 2024, Week 2.
We want your predictions for Saturday’s 2024 PFL 2 event in Las Vegas.
We want your predictions for Friday’s PFL 2024, Week 2 event in Las Vegas.
Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Wednesday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).
Those reader consensus picks will be part of the main card staff predictions we release Wednesday ahead of 2024 PFL 2 (ESPN2/ESPN+), which takes place Friday at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas.
Make your picks below.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of PFL 2024, Week 2 in Las Vegas, which features light heavyweights and lightweights.
The PFL’s 2024 regular season continues this week with PFL 2024, Week 2, which features light heavyweights and lightweights in action for the first time this year.
Here’s how to watch PFL 2024, Week 2, with a complete lineup and breakdown by division.
Heavyweight Marcelo Nunes might have a little bit of a chip on his shoulder heading into the PFL’s 2024 season.
[autotag]Marcelo Nunes[/autotag] might have a little bit of a chip on his shoulder heading into the PFL’s 2024 season.
Nunes (10-2) had to pull out of the heavyweight postseason in 2023 because of an injury. He was set to meet Renan Ferreira in the opening round. Ferreira went on to win the $1 million title. Then five weeks ago, he knocked out Bellator heavyweight champ Ryan Bader in just 21 seconds to set up a potential fight with Francis Ngannou.
Nunes said at a media day for the PFL’s 2024 regular season debut he broke his hand against Danilo Marques in the regular season and couldn’t heal in time.
Unfortunately for Nunes, his fight April 12 at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas is not part of the 2024 heavyweight season.
“I’m excited to show my work on April 12,” Nunes said. “Next year, or if somebody gets injured or something, I’m going to be ready to represent and go in there and compete in the bracket again.”
All he can do is win and hope for a way into the $1 million season, and that starts with fellow Brazilian Giacomo Lemos (8-0).
Coincidentally, the two fought back-to-back on a PFL Challenger Series event two years ago. Now they get to fight, and it’ll be in Nunes’ Las Vegas home base.
“I’m just going there to get a win,” Nunes said. “I never try to put on a show. I just want to get a win – go in there, get my work done. The last time I fought in Vegas, I felt a lot of pressure, but I feel I learned a lot from it. It’s definitely special fighting at home in town, especially now I own a gym here in Vegas. My whole students, my whole family has been there watching. But I feel like I’m mentally prepared more than the last time, because last time’s the first time fighting in Vegas. I feel really good. It’s crazy for me, but I feel prepared this time.”
Check out Nunes’ full media day interview above.
Alex Polizzi is drawing PFL’s most recent light heavyweight champion in his debut.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Alex Polizzi[/autotag] is drawing PFL’s most recent light heavyweight champion in his debut.
Polizzi (10-3) meets 2023 PFL light heavyweight champion [autotag]Impa Kasanganay[/autotag] (15-4) in the PFL 2 co-main event at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas.
Polizzi faces a stern test for his first regular season fight, but isn’t fazed.
“I told my manager right off the bat: We got the dark horse seed,” Polizzi told reporters during a media scrum at Xtreme Couture. “It’s a chance for me to go in, my debut in the PFL, to show them what ‘Easy Polizzi’ is all about. Whether we win, lose or draw, like I always say, it’s going to be a good time.”
Polizzi finds himself in unfamiliar territory having lost back to-back to Yoel Romero and Karl Moore. While the aim is to snap his two-fight losing skid, Polizzi also guarantees to entertain. Eight of his 10 professional wins have come by finish.
“I don’t want to make it seem like, ‘Oh, if you’ve seen one Alex fight, you’ve seen them all,'” Polizzi said. “The thing is, I’m always bringing a certain amount of organized chaos.
“So make sure you’re tuning in because I’m going to do some weird stuff. I’m going to have a lot of fun doing it, and like I say all the time, if you guys are having half as much fun watching me as I’m getting out of it, that’s worth the price of admission.”
Former Bellator fighter Mads Burnell is “super happy” to enter the PFL’s season format while not worrying about cutting as much weight.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Mads Burnell[/autotag] is just days away from beginning a new fighting experience and couldn’t be happier about the future.
Burnell (18-5), who fought under the Bellator fighter from 2020-23, switched to PFL after it acquired the promotion. While some things will remain the same, such as some familiar faces behind the scenes, but when it comes to business inside the cage, there will be several differences for the Danish fighter.
“I’m excited about it,” Burnell told reporters at a media scrum at XTreme Couture. “The only difference is that now you kind of know when you’re fighting and stuff like that. I’m super happy about that. That’s actually why when I heard they were going to merge, I was like I need to get in that. If you fight for UFC, Bellator, or whatever, it can be a little inconsistent when you’re fighting. But here, you know when and where to fight, so it’s super cool.”
For the PFL season format, Burnell will also be making the move from featherweight to lightweight. He is aware that cutting weight so often is not a wise decision due to its negative effects on his performance.
“Now I got to make weight so often, and the last four or five times making ’45 have been super, super tough,” Burnell said. “So, I think it’s natural progression. When I started fighting, I was 19. I was walking around like 163, 164 soaking wet. I just turned 30 like two weeks ago, and the weight is a little different than it was when I was 19. I became a man, so it’s only natural progression I’m going up a weight class.”
Burnell’s new journey begins at 2024 PFL 2 on April 12, when he faces Michael Dufort (12-4) for his first regular season bout. He will be looking to extend his two-fight streak in what he hopes will be the first of many entertaining fights going forward.
“For me, it’s like I’m in this because I want to put on exciting fights,” Burnell said. “When it’s all said and done, I want the up-and-comers to look at me how I was looking at the (Arturo) Gatti, (Micky) Ward’s, the (Evander) Holyfield’s, stuff like that. The million is just the cherry on top, but this just gives me extra opportunity to put on exciting fights, knowing when I’m fighting – it’s perfect.”
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