Matches To Make After PFL: ‘Battle Of The Giants’

PFL

Professional Fighters League (PFL) staged the massive “Battle of the Giants” pay-per-view (PPV) event yesterday (Sat., Oct. 19, 2024) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on ESPN+, which saw Francis Ngannou make a successful return to mixed martial arts (MMA) with a first-round destruction of Renan Ferreira (see it again here). In the co-main event, Cris Cyborg picked up another world title by defeating a durable Larissa Pacheco for the women’s Super Fight Featherweight title (highlights here).

PFL

Winner: Francis Ngannou

Who He Should Face Next: Denis Goltsov vs. Oleg Popov winner

PFL will return to Riyadh on Nov. 29 for its annual world championships where the promotion will crown six champions and dish out six separate $1 million checks. One of those title fights will crown a new heavyweight champion as Denis Goltsov will face Oleg Popov in the finals. The winner will more than likely be “The Predator’s” next challenge sometime in 2025, assuming Ngannou doesn’t pursue another boxing match. Of course, we’d all like to see an eventual showdown between he and Jon Jones, but that will likely never happen.

PFL

Winner: Cris Cyborg

Who She Should Face Next: Sara Collins

Now that Cyborg has entered an exclusive club by winning her fifth world title for a fifth different promotion, she has options. She has already defeated PFL’s 145-pound champion in Pacheco, so she could very well turn her attention to defending her Bellator strap in 2025. And that opponent will likely come against Collins, who pulled off a huge win by defeating Leah McCourt — who was in line for a title fight — at Bellator London last month. Collins — who is 6-0, 3-0 Bellator — admitted that she was a “little scared” of Cyborg, which isn’t a good sign. Still, Collins can learn a lot from Pacheco’s performance because if you punch the bully in the mouth, she will back down. And, let’s be honest, Cyborg isn’t exactly in the prime of her career so this is going to be the best time for Collins to even have the slightest chance of an upset.

PFL

Winner: Johnny Eblen

Who He Should Face Next: Wait and see...

Eblen kept his undefeated record intact, improving to 16-0 by defeating Fabian Edwards for the second time. While it was for the Bellator belt, it was under the PFL banner. As far as what could realistically be next for “Pressure,” that is a bit tough to lock down because no one is really standing out at the moment. A showdown against Jordan Newman seems to be in inevitable since is undefeated at 7-0 with all of his wins coming inside the Bellator cage. But he has yet to face a true, ranked foe or long-term member of the Bellator roster. Aaron Jeffery, Dalton Rosta and Costello van Steenis are out there, but neither is on a consecutive win streak at the moment. Newman has been with the promotion for five years, so now might seem as good a time as any to give him his shot, and he would more than give Eblen a run for his money in the wrestling department as a former NCAA division III champion. All Eblen can do now is sit back to see what’s what.

PFL

Winner: Paul Hughes

Who He Should Face Next: Usman Nurmagomedov

After pulling off a huge upset win over former Bellator MMA Featherweight champion, A.J. McKee, Hughes got on the mic and shot his shot, calling for a title fight against Lightweight champion, Usman Nurmagomedov. And at this point, there really is no point in denying him the bout. Had McKee won the fight, he would have likely gotten the title shot next, so “Big News” should be afforded the same opportunity. Nurmagomedov recently defended his strap against Alexandr Shabliy, so he would be primed for a return sometime in early 2025 since there are no more Bellator event scheduled for the year.

To checkout the latest and greatest news and notes for “Ngannou vs. Ferreira” be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized “Battle of the Giants” fight card and PPV lineup click here.