Knockdown Daily 4/6/22: Kayla Harrison Set For May 6th PFL Card
Kayla Harrison's first fight of 2022 leads the MMA headlines for Wednesday
Welcome to the Wednesday edition of the Knockdown Daily. Here are the top MMA news stories from the past 48 hours.
News
Kayla Harrison To Headline May 6th PFL Event Featuring Lightweights, Welterweights
Two-time PFL Lightweight Champion Kayla Harrison will begin her campaign towards a third consecutive title on May 6th, facing Marina Mokhnatkina in the main event of a card from the eSports Arena in Arlington, Texas, USA.
The headlining fight, along with an entire 11-fight card was revealed by the PFL on Tuesday. The event is set to be the first of two regular-season events that will include PFL’s men’s welterweight and women’s lightweight divisions.
Harrison is entering the 2022 season with an undefeated record of 12 wins. She scored four victories last year, with all of those performances ending via stoppage.
Mokhnatkina will be competing in her first-ever full PFL season. She appeared once in the promotion last year, earning a win over Claudia Zamora.
2021 PFL Welterweight Champion Ray Cooper III will return in the co-main event against undefeated prospect Magomed Umalatov.
Cooper III earned his first PFL title last year after competing for three seasons in the promotion. He finished 2021 in poetic fashion, avenging a loss against Magomed Magomedkerimov with a third-round finish win to claim the title.
He’s now set to face Umalatov, who is entering the promotion with a flawless record of 11 wins since turning pro in 2015.
While most of the card is focused on men’s welterweight and women’s lightweight fights, there is also a fight between men’s lightweight fighters Anthony Pettis and Myles Price on the main card.
The fight between Pettis and Price was first scheduled for the promotion’s season opener on April 20th. It is not known at the moment why it was moved.
The main card is scheduled to be headlined by a welterweight fight between former Bellator champion Rory MacDonald and veteran Brett Cooper. MacDonald was a semi-finalist last year, getting eliminated from the bracket by 2021 winner Cooper III.
Here’s the full lineup:
Main Card
Bout 11: Kayla Harrison (12-0) vs. Marina Mokhnatkina (6-2) (Lightweight)
Bout 10: Ray Cooper III (24-7-1) vs. Magomed Umalatov (11-0) (Welterweight)
Bout 9: Anthony Pettis (24-12) vs. Myles Price (11-7) (Lightweight)
Bout 8: Rory MacDonald (22-8-1) vs. Brett Cooper (28-15) (Welterweight)
Preliminary Card
Bout 7: Magomed Magomedkerimov (29-6) vs. Joao Zeferino (26-9) (Welterweight)
Bout 6: Genah Fabian (4-2) vs. Julia Budd (16-3) (Lightweight)
Bout 5: Sadibou Sy (9-6-2) vs. Nikolai Aleksakhin (26-6) (Welterweight)
Bout 4: Larissa Pacheco (15-4) vs. Zamzagul Fayzallanova (7-1) (Lightweight)
Bout 3: Gleison Tibau (36-15) vs. Jarrah Al-Silawi (17-3) (Welterweight)
Bout 2: Olena Kolesnyk (5-4) vs. Abigail Montes (3-0) (Lightweight)
Bout 1: Vanessa Melo (11-8) vs. Martina Jindrova (4-2) (Lightweight)
Joanderson Brito To Face Andre Fili At April 30th UFC Event
In search of his first win since joining the UFC roster, Joanderson Brito will face Andre Fili at the promotion’s April 30th card. News of this featherweight card was first reported by Mike Heck of MMA Fighting on Sunday.
The matchup is joining a “Fight Night” card that is set to take place at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Brito was unsuccessful his UFC debut earlier this year, suffering a decision loss to Bill Algeo. Before then he had an extensive winning streak on the regional scene that lead him to an appearance on the UFC TV show “Dana White’s Contender Series.”
Fili will be fighting to score his first victory in over a year. His last fight was in 2021 against Daniel Pineda, which ended in a no-contest result due to an unintentional eye poke.
Before then, Fili lost a decision to Bryce Mitchell in October 2020. His last victory dates back to June 2020, when he got a split decision nod over Bryce Mitchell.
Two Fights Set For June 18th UFC ‘Fight Night’ Card
Two new matchups have been reported for UFC’s June 18th event. The location of this card is not known at the moment.
Hawes vs. Winn Re-Booked
UFC is attempting to make a fight between Deron Winn and Phil Hawes for the third time. News of this matchup was confirmed by Mike Heck of MMA Fighting last week.
The middleweights have been paired up twice over the past year, although both times their booking has fallen through. Because of this, Winn has yet to compete since late 2020.
Winn’s last fight was in late 2020, snapping a losing streak with a decision victory over Antonio Arroyo.
Hawes took his first UFC loss in his last appearance, suffering a finish against Chris Curtis in November 2021. Before then, he had attained three consecutive wins in the promotion.
Daukaus, Dolidze Attempted Again
A matchup between Chris Daukaus and Roman Dolidze is also being attempted for UFC’s June 18th card, per social media posts by both fighters.
Dolidze and Daukaus were booked for a card in November 2021, although COVID-19 protocols forced that fight to not happen.
Daukaus has picked up a win since then, submitting short-notice opponent Jamie Pickett in February via darce choke.
While Dolidze hasn’t fought in nearly a year, he is coming off a decision win that he scored against Laureano Staropoli in 2021.
Heavyweights Josh Parisian, Alan Baudot Paired For June 25th UFC Card
A heavyweight matchup between Josh Parisian and Alan Baudot has been booked for UFC’s June 25th event, as announced by both fighters recently.
Both fighters will be attempting to return to the win column.
Parisian was stopped in his last appearance, getting finished by Don’Tale Mayes late last year. That fight moved his promotional record to one win and two losses.
Baudot will be fighting to earn his first UFC win. He has been unsuccessful through three appearances in the promotion, resulting in two losses and one no contest.
Baudot’s last fight was in February when Parker Porter earned a unanimous decision victory over him.
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