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Check out these photos from Denis Goltsov vs. Jordan Heiderman at 2023 PFL Playoffs 2 in New York.
Check out these photos from [autotag]Denis Goltsov[/autotag]’s victory over Jordan Heiderman at 2023 PFL Playoffs 2 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York. (Photos courtesy of Cooper Neill, PFL MMA)
Check out these photos from Jordan Heiderman vs. Patrick Brady at 2023 PFL 5 in Atlanta.
Check out these photos from Jordan Heiderman’s victory over Patrick Brady at 2023 PFL 5 at Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta. (Photos courtesy of Cooper Neill, PFL MMA)
For those who make it to the highest stage, the journey starts long before they strap on UFC or Bellator gloves.
Every champion in MMA history started out somewhere.
For those who make it to the highest stage, the journey begins long before they strap on UFC, Bellator, or PFL gloves. Modern-era fighters progress through the regional ranks with hopes of accomplishing the highest accolades. Many will try, few will succeed.
This month, five fighters on the verge of achieving major promotion notoriety – one for the second time – return to the cage for what could be their stepping stone fight. There are dozens of fighters close to making the jump in the coming weeks, but these five are particularly exemplary.
An action-packed LFA 107 main event ended with one fighter uttering the words, “I’m retired” on the stool.
Eleven finishes in as many pro victories, [autotag]Kamuela Kirk[/autotag] kept his streak alive in the LFA 107 main event.
In his first LFA headliner, Kirk (11-4) defeated fellow Dana White’s Contender Series alumnus [autotag]Daniel Swain[/autotag] via TKO due to retirement in between Round 2 and 3.
Swain (20-11-1), who had lost in between rounds on DWCS in 2020, uttered the words “I’m retired” to his corner, which indicated to the LFA commentary team that Swain’s fight Friday would be his last. Swain took off his gloves for the decision but was not interviewed post-fight and thus did not provide clarity on the situation.
The stoppage came after an action-packed opening 10 minutes. Kirk landed multiple flurries of significant strikes in Round 1 that appeared to have Swain in trouble. Just when it looked like he was in a bad spot, Swain shot up with an armbar – foreshadowing of the theme of Round 2. Much of the second round was spent with Kirk on top of Swain, who shot up and looked for submissions.
Kirk, 27, has now won back-to-back fights since losses to Bruno Silva and Billy Quarantillo temporarily halted his momentum toward a major promotional deal. After the victory, Kirk called for a meeting with his “business partner” Dana White, and expressed interest in fighting at UFC 263 in his home state of Arizona.
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The undercard was highlighted by [autotag]Ricardo Dias[/autotag], who landed a nasty flying knee on [autotag]George Garcia[/autotag] in the co-main event. Also, former collegiate football player [autotag]Jordan Heiderman[/autotag] kept his undefeated record intact against former [autotag]Jake Hager[/autotag] opponent [autotag]Anthony Garrett[/autotag].
In the women’s divisions, [autotag]Taylor Mauldin[/autotag] became the first female to end a fight via kneebar in LFA history after [autotag]Kay Hansen[/autotag] confidant [autotag]Alandria Brown[/autotag] won her highly-anticipated professional debut by rear-naked choke.
LFA 107 took place Friday at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The main card streamed on UFC Fight Pass after prelims on Facebook.
The full LFA 107 results include:
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