Two championship matches will headline the October PFL Champions Series: Road to Dubai event.
Set from the Coca-Cola Arena in the United Arab Emirates on Friday, October 3, the card will be headlined by Usman Nurmagomedov defending his lightweight title against Paul Hughes.
Nurmagomedov is a perfect 19-0 overall with a majority decision win over Hughes back in January that earned him a defense of his Bellator title. After the win, he was promoted to PFL lightweight champion.
Hughes had won seven in a row prior to the close loss, including an October split decision over A.J. McKee. He is 13-2 in his career with 10 finishes, including a May victory over Bruno Miranda.
Corey Anderson puts his light heavyweight title on the line against Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov, winner of the 2024 tournament. Anderson is a former Ultimate Fighter winner.
Other bouts announced include Pouya Rahmani vs. Slim Trabelsi, Artem Lobov vs. Zubaira Tukhugov and Omar El Dafrawy vs. Florim Zendeli. Lobov and Tukhugov were scheduled to face each other back in 2018 in the UFC before being involved in a post-fight brawl.
The main card will air live on ESPN+.
“PFL Champions Series on October 3 in Dubai will be one of the biggest nights in PFL history,” said PFL CEO John Martin. “To have two PFL world titles on the line, featuring four world-class athletes at the top of their game, shows exactly what makes PFL different.”
PFL Champions Series: Road to Dubai – The Rematch Main Card:
MAIN CARDPFL Lightweight World Title Main Event: Usman Nurmagomedov (19-0, 1 NC) vs. Paul Hughes (14-2)PFL Light Heavyweight World Title Co-Main Event: Corey Anderson (19-6) vs. Dovlet Yagshimuradov (25-7-1)
EARLY CARDHeavyweight Showcase Bout: Pouya Rahmani (4-0) vs. Slim Trabelsi (8-0)165-Pound Catchweight Bout: Zubaira Tukhugov (20-6-1) vs. Artem Lobov (14-15-1)Welterweight Showcase Bout: Omar El Dafrawy (14-5) vs. Florim Zendeli (10-1-1)
