Clay Collard’s mission to become PFL lightweight champion and win $1 million continues Friday night when he meets Raush Manfio in a playoff semifinal, and you can be sure that his brother will be on his mind.
Collard’s brother, Chad, was killed in a car accident this past February. He was 23. The tragedy happened prior to the start of the 2021 PFL season, which Collard opened by soundly defeating former UFC champion Anthony Pettis.
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In a video feature courtesy of the PFL and narrated by Randy Couture, Collard gets emotional opening up about his brother’s untimely death and the motivation he’s had all season to keep winning for him.
“He’s the last thing I think about when I’m walking into the cage and the first thing that I think about when the fight is over,” Collard said. “This is for Chad. That mentality is what’s driving me. I’m gonna be a hard man to beat.”
2021 PFL Playoffs 1, which features welterweights and lightweights, takes place Friday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. The main card airs on ESPN 2 and streams on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN+.