Professional Fighters League Crowns Four Champs at 2024 PFL Europe Finals

Bantamweight bully Lewis McGrillen-Evans (10-1) could be one of the most exciting additions to the Professional Fighters League Global roster next season after the Manchester native won the organization’s European bantamweight title with an outstanding second-round TKO over Alexander Luster at the PFL Europe 2024 Finals in Lyon, France.

McGrillen opened the fight very strong, dropping the German with a left hook, but Luster wouldn’t go away quietly. Luster shook off the cobwebs and cut McGrillen over his eye with his own heavy shots, and just like that, it was on. The two warriors slugged it out until the Manchester Top Team standout put Luster (9-2) flat on his back with another picture-perfect left hook. It would only take a few more finishing blows to cap off the performance. At 24, McGrillen–Evans could be a rising star in the PFL. Last season, he was stopped short of PFL Europe glory, but he redeemed himself on Saturday with an unforgettable performance.

The PFL Europe lightweight championship was a back-and-forth affair.

Undefeated Jakub Kaszuba entered looking to win his second-straight 155-pound PFL Europe title, but he’d have to go through the heavy-handed Connor Hughes. Hughes took control of the bout early and dropped Kaszuba multiple times with his textbook boxing. Two rounds into the fight, Kaszuba looked bewildered but remained confident that he could turn things around if he could close the distance.

In the third stanza, the Poland native finally got his hands on Hughes and took the Englishman to the mat. Kaszuba battered Hughes and drained his battery before finally putting his stamp on the comeback in round four. With Hughes pinned, Kaszuba dropped elbows from above while referee Daniel Movahedi pleaded with Hughes (10-2) to respond. Movahedi finally called the bout 4:07, giving Kaszuba (14-0) his second straight PFL Europe title. Now, he sets his sights on the global tournament.

The PFL Europe welterweight final was short and sweet.

Daniele Miceli and Florim Zendeli fought furiously for four and a half minutes, but in the end, Zendeli's hand was raised in victory. Miceli (13-6) took the fight to the mat early and fiercely bloodied the Albanian’s nose, but Zendeli’s grappling was too fluid. With blood dripping, Zendeli (8-1-1) took Miceli’s back against the cage and finished the fight with a rear-naked choke (4:24) to claim the PFL Europe welterweight tournament title.

Polish puncher Paulina Wisniewska claimed the $100,000 PFL Europe women’s flyweight grand prize after brutally TKOing Italy’s Valentina Scatizzi in the opening minute (0:20).

Scatizzi (3-4) bull rushed the undefeated prospect early and ate a flush knee for her trouble. As Scatizzi fought to regain her footing, Wisniewska reigned down unanswered shots until the fight was called. This marks back-to-back PFL Europe championship losses for Scattizi, who was defeated by PFL global champion Dakota Ditcheva in last year’s finals. Wisniewska was initially supposed to fight Great Britain’s rising star Shanelle Dyer in the finals before Dyer was forced to withdraw due to a leg injury.

Related » 2024 PFL Europe Finals Round-by-Round Scoring

French welterweight favorite Abdoul Abdouraguimov notched his ninth-straight win with an authoritative showing against Laureano Staropoli. Abdouragimov’s (19-1) grappling was too much for the experienced Argentine on Saturday. Staropoli had success on the feet and tagged his man with several hard right hands but Abdouragiumov routinely took Starropoli’s back and threatened dangerous submissions. Staropoli (13-7) is a solid fighter with experience in the UFC and the PFL global roster but Abdouraguimov clearly was a step ahead and cruised to the unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28).

After two dominant rounds, 165-pound prospect Patrick Habirora closed the show against Catalin Safta with one of the cleanest one-shot knockouts you’ll ever see. As Safta pressed the undefeated Habirora (5-0), the young stud slipped two punches, shifted into a southpaw stance and knocked out Safta with a picture-perfect lead right hook (2:16). The knockout was Habirora’s third in a row and big things could be ahead for the explosive Belgian.

French heavyweight Mickael Groguhe (6-2) picked up his third straight win after earning a unanimous decision over Senegal’s Mamadou Lamine Sene in a slow-paced bout (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). Groguhe was the sharper fighter on the feet but coasted through the rounds once Sene entered the clinch. Sene (5-8) dropped his second in a row.

Salvo Giudice (1-0) won his first professional bout in dominating fashion, as he outwrestled Atilla Kobas (2-2) throughout their 176-pound catchweight bout en route to a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-25). The fight was the first of three “Doumbe Decides” fights where French kickboxing and MMA star Cedric Doumbe decides if a fighter's performance warrants a PFL Europe contract. Doumbe was impressed by Giudice’s dominance but bored by his wrestling-heavy performance and lack of a finish.

French featherweight Mathys Duragrin earned himself a PFL contract from Doumbe with a dominant three-round showing over Yassin Chtatou (30-26, 30-26, 30-25). Duragrin (4-0) had his way with Chtatou the entire fight and led the action with his wrestling along the cage. He easily picked his shots and tagged Chtatou, but the sturdy Chtatou (5-5) wouldn’t go away.

Mahio Campanella left Doumbe smiling ear-to-ear after submitting Ezzoubair Bouarsa with a arm-triangle choke 4:45 into the first round of their bantamweight bout. Campanella’s flashy striking and spinning kicks brought the crowd to its feet before finally closing the show with a devastating submission in the closing seconds of the frame. Campanella (6-1) secured his fourth-straight win.

At 6-foot-5, Irish welterweight Eoin Sheridan could be an eventual terror to the division. The SBG Ireland prospect improved to 2-0 on Saturday after controlling French favorite Brice Belghazi (1-1) for three rounds en route to a clear decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). Despite his lanky frame, Sheridan showed impressive MMA grappling skills and routinely got to top position. Belghazi was game but was out of position for most of the fight.

SBG Ireland lightweight prospect Claudio Pacella (5-2) opened the broadcast with his second straight win over the experienced Oscar Ownsworth (8-4-1). Pacella got the better of the exchanges and edged out the early rounds but faced adversity in the third period when he was hurt to the body by an Ownsworth knee. Pacella showed poise and weathered the storm to coast to a unanimous decision win (29-28, 30-27, 30-27).