Throughout the first two rounds, the Russian worked first and dominated his opponent both in the standup and in the parterre, and at the beginning of the third five-minute period Magomedkerimov powerfully punched Xi’s body with a straight punch, forcing him to stagger back to the net and seek escape in the struggle, after which he took the Swedish fighter’s neck, conducted a guillotine choke and forced him to signal submission at the 1:17 mark.
After receiving the championship belt and a check for one million dollars, Magomed Magomedkerimov had a battle of glances with current Bellator champion Jason Jackson, who will be his opponent in next year’s joint PFL and Bellator tournament.
Magomedkerimov’s compatriots, Marina Mokhnatkina and Denis Goltsov, failed to win championship gold, suffering defeats in their final matches of the season.
Mokhnatkina, who claimed the PFL women’s featherweight title, lost three times to Brazilian Larissa Pacheco by unanimous 49-46 decision over five rounds, while Goltsov lost by knockout in the second round to Brazilian Henan Ferreira, who became the PFL heavyweight champion.
Also at the PFL Finals in Washington, D.C., the league champions in the lightweight, welterweight, and flyweight divisions were Olivier Aubin-Mercier, Jesus Pinedo, and Impa Kasanganay, respectively.
Among other results, we note the successful debut in the organization of American middleweight Derek Brunson, who at the end of three rounds defeated his compatriot Ray Cooper III by unanimous decision.
All results from the final PFL tournament.