Mixed fortunes for British fighters at PFL 1
Simeon Powell and Stevie Ray flew the flag for the UK on a spectacular night as the PFL's 2022 season kicked off in style in Arlington, Texas.
The PFL's 2022 season kicked off with a bang in Arlington, Texas on Wednesday night, as Clay Collard and Jeremy Stephens added another contender to the "Fight of the Year" list in a dynamite lightweight main event.
Collard outpointed Stephens after three thrilling rounds to get his season off to a winning start, while Stephens saw his PFL debut end in defeat, albeit an entertaining one.
The night saw two British fighters take to the PFL cage for the very first time, with one picking up an impressive win, and the other losing out on the scorecards.
Light heavyweight Simeon Powell, who earned a PFL contract just two weeks earlier, produced one of the finishes of the night in the event's first bout.
Competing in a non-season bout against American Clinton Williams, Powell overcame some early adversity before hitting his stride and finishing his man with a huge knee up the middle with just 22 seconds left in the fight.
Unfortunately for Scotland's Stevie Ray, his promotional debut didn't fare quite as well.
Returning from a three-year hiatus, Ray faced Paraguay's Alex Martinez and, despite dropping his man with a beautiful two-punch combination in the second round, ended up on the wrong side of a unanimous decision. It means the former UFC lightweight's PFL regular season campaign started off with a defeat, but a finish in his next bout could put him right back in the mix again.
Also on the card, there were notable wins for 2021 champions Raush Manfio and Antonio Carlos Junior. Manfio TKO'd Don Madge to make a flying start to the defence of his lightweight championship, while "Shoeface" needed just 29 seconds to submit fellow Brazilian Delan Monte with a D'Arce choke and serve notice to the rest of the light heavyweight division that he's gunning for back-to-back championships at 205 pounds.
There will be more British interest when the PFL returns on April 28 for PFL 2, with English heavyweight Stuart Austin set to star in the main event against 2021 heavyweight champion Bruno Cappelozza, while the co-main event features English featherweight star Brendan Loughnane, who faces off against Japanese contender Ryoji Kudo.
PFL 1: Official Results
MAIN CARD
Clay Collard def. Jeremy Stephens via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Raush Manfio def. Don Madge via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 2:42
Antonio Carlos Junior def. Delan Monte via submission (D'Arce choke) – Round 1, 0:29
Olivier Aubin-Mercier def. Natan Schulte via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD
Cory Hendricks def. Emiliano Sordi via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 2:13
Alex Martinez def. Stevie Ray via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Marthin Hamlet def. Teodoras Aukstuolis via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Omari Akhmedov def. Viktor Pesta via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 1:25
Rob Wilkinson def. Bruce Souto via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 0:46
Simeon Powell def. Clinton Williams via knockout (knee) – Round 3, 4:38