Al Qahtani, Alsaif steal the spotlight at inaugural PFL Mena fight night in Riyadh

The Professional Fighters League (PFL), one of the fastest-growing and most innovative mixed martial arts sports leagues in the world, kicked off the historic inaugural season of PFL MENA at The Green Halls in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Friday.

Athletes in the Bantamweight and Featherweight divisions took centre stage to secure their spots in the PFL MENA Playoffs.

In the main event, Abdullah Al-Qahtani put on a show for his hometown fans as he battered Yazeed Hasanain of Jordan en route to a verbal submission win, earning himself a spot in the Featherweight semi-finals.

In the co-main event, Iraq’s Ali Taleb was a force from start to finish as he dominated Jordanian Nawras Abzakh to earn a unanimous decision win and a spot in the Bantamweight semi-finals Taleb improved to 11-1 in his career.

Morocco’s Rachid El Hazoume showed off his submission skills and forced countryman Xavier Alaoui to tap out to a rear-naked choke submission in the second round. As a result, El Hazoume advances to the Bantamweight semi-finals and moves to 14-3 in his career.

Islam Reda of Egypt turned in a strong performance as he defeated Morocco’s Adam Meskini by unanimous decision to advance to the Featherweight semi-finals. The win marked Reda’s fifth straight, and it improved his career record to 11-1.

Jordan’s Jalal Al Daaja punched his ticket to the PFL MENA Playoffs after edging out Sudan’s Tariq Ismail by a majority draw in their Bantamweight matchup. The victory pushed Al Daaja’s career record to 12-7.

Algeria’s Elias Boudegzdame was the first fighter in the Bantamweight division to advance to the Playoffs after scoring a slick second-round guillotine submission win over Egypt’s Hassan Mandour. With the win, Boudegzdame improved to 19-8 in his MMA career.

Saudi Arabia’s own Hattan Alsaif turned in a spectacular MMA debut in a Women’s Flyweight amateur showcase bout, knocking out Egypt’s Nada Faheem with a head kick in the second round. Alsaif made history by becoming the first female fighter from Saudi Arabia to sign a contract with a major MMA promotion.

Featherweight division action saw Morocco’s Maraoune Bellagouit land a powerful left hook in the third round to knock out Egypt’s Mido Mohamed in the third round and move on to the semi-finals. Bellagouit remains undefeated and moves to 5-0 in his career.

In the first Featherweight bout of the PFL MENA season, Jordan’s Abdelrahman Alhyasat outworked Ahmed Tarek of Egypt to win by unanimous decision and advance to the semi-finals. Alhyasat improved to 4-0 in his professional career.

Earlier, kicking the action off, Saudi Arabia’s own Malik Basahel put on a dominant performance, defeating India’s Harsh Pandya by unanimous decision in a Flyweight amateur showcase bout to improve to 19-2-1 in his career.

Results

Featherweight Bout:

Abdullah Al-Qahtani def. Yazeed Hasanain by Verbal Submission (Punches) at 4:59 of Round 2

Bantamweight Bout:

Ali Taleb def. Nawras Abzakh by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Bantamweight Bout:

Rachid El Hazoume def. Xavier Alaoui by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 2:55 of Round 2

Featherweight Bout:

Islam Reda def. Adam Meskini by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Bantamweight Bout:

Jalal Al Daaja  def. Tariq Ismail by Majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)

• PFL continues global expansion with sights set on the Middle East