5 Defining Moments: The PFL in 2022

The Professional Fighters League closed out its latest campaign a little more than a month ago, having staged 142 bouts across 18 events. Titles changed hands, the hellos outnumbered the goodbyes and millions of dollars in prize money was awarded between Feb. 18 and Nov. 12. It was a consequential 365 days in the life of the promotion.

As the PFL preps plans and lays the groundwork for future endeavors, a look at five of the many moments that came to define it over the last 12 months:

1. Unflinching Firefight

Clay Collard decided to fight fire with fire and emerged no worse for wear, as accuracy and activity carried him to a unanimous decision over Jeremy Stephens in an unforgettable PFL 1 headliner on April 20 at Esports Stadium in Arlington, Texas. All three cageside judges scored it 30-27, though most other observers thought it was far more competitive than the verdict indicated. Stephens threw heat for the duration and rang his counterpart’s bell more than once with powerful right hands. Collard was undeterred. He stepped into high-volume punching combinations to the head and body, incorporated kicks when needed and even mixed in a few takedowns. His seemingly limitless gas tank and Kevlar beard allowed him to stay ahead of Stephens, who fought through fatigue in his promotional debut and perhaps did his best work in the third round.

2. Heavy Ramifications

Former Absolute Championship Berkut titleholder Denis Goltsov dispatched Cody Goodale with punches in the first round of their PFL 2 showcase on April 28 at Esports Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Goltsov drew the curtain 3:20 into Round 1, establishing himself as an early heavyweight favorite. Goodale was out of his depth. Goltsov drew blood with one of his patented jabs, closed the distance and executed a trip takedown from the clinch. From there, he maintained top position, cut loose with ground-and-pound and prompted the stoppage with a volley of unanswered punches. Goltsov was back in the cage two months later, as he took a unanimous decision from Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Maurice Greene and clinched the No. 1 seed in the million-dollar heavyweight tournament. Unfortunately, “visa issues” related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine kept Goltsov from competing in the semifinals, which were staged in Wales in August. Instead, he watched from the sidelines as Juan Adams took his place in the draw and lost to Matheus Scheffel by third-round technical knockout.

3. A Twist of Fate

Steven Ray re-established himself as a person of interest at 155 pounds when he submitted former UFC and World Extreme Cagefighting titleholder Anthony Pettis with a modified twister in the second round of their PFL 5 co-main event on June 24 at Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta. Pettis raised the white flag 3:57 into Round 2, having been victimized in Sherdog’s 2022 “Submission of the Year.” Pettis answered the Scot’s merciless pressure with an axe kick, a few aerial attacks and stance switches throughout a back-and-forth first round. He picked up steam in the second, where he connected with a few partially blocked head kicks and various other surgical strikes. However, an ill-advised Pettis takedown attempt resulted in a scramble that saw “Braveheart” maneuver behind the Duke Roufus protégé, apply his ground-and-pound and ultimately climb onto the back. From there, Ray secured himself with a body triangle, then torqued on Pettis torso when “Showtime” tried to turn into top position. The pressure was unbearable, forcing the Milwaukee native to tap.

4. Unceremonious Departure

Sanford MMA’s Dilano Taylor hushed all talk of a Rory MacDonald resurgence when he cut down the top-seeded Canadian with first-round punches, as their 2022 Professional Fighters League semifinal headlined PFL 8 on Aug. 13 at Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, Wales. A short-notice substitution for Magomed Umalatov, Taylor slammed the door 3:59 into Round 1. MacDonald initiated an immediate clinch but wound up on his back after a failed takedown. He ultimately returned to an upright position but found himself at a significant disadvantage in the hand speed department. Taylor connected with regularity before flooring the Tristar Gym mainstay with a searing right cross. MacDonald then retreated into a shell on the ground and ate one too many follow-up punches for referee Marc Goddard’s liking. Afterward, he announced his retirement from mixed martial arts.

5. Uneasy Lies the Head

Larissa Pacheco kicked her career into another gear when she upset two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison by unanimous decision, as their women’s lightweight final shoulder the marquee for the 2022 PFL Championships on Nov. 25 at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater in New York. All three members of the cageside judiciary struck 48-47 scorecards for Pacheco, who earned a life-changing $1 million paycheck for her efforts. Harrison followed a familiar path in the first round, where she looked to be in prime form. She tripped Pacheco to the canvas, applied oppressive top control and racked up points with body-head ground-and-pound, throwing punches with varying intensity. However, Harrison did not exact enough of a toll to dissuade the former Jungle Fight champion. Pacheco rebounded in the second round, seized the initiative with an attempted guillotine choke and put the American Top Team star on notice. From there, they tested one another in a series of back-and-forth exchanges, on the feet, in the clinch and on the ground. Harrison secured multiple takedowns, but she either drifted into danger through submissions—she found herself entangled in a triangle choke in the third round—or was met with ferocious resistance from Pacheco’s hyperactive bottom game, as the Joao Bastos protégé snapped off rapid-fire punches and hammerfists from her back.