The welterweight and lightweight divisions did not disappoint in Riyadh!
Every PFL MENA 2 finish
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July 12, 2024
The semi-final matchups for the Professional Fighters League’s inaugural season in the Middle East and North Africa have been decided.
Welterweights Mohamed Alakra, Jallah Al Shirawi, Badreddine Diani and Omar El Dhaflawi, along with lightweights Mohsen MohammadSeifi, Suhir Tahiri, Abdullah Saleem and Georges Eid, will compete in PFL MENA 2 on Friday at the Green Hall in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The winners of each weight class will receive a $100,000 prize and will also be considered for a spot on the PFL’s global roster in 2025.
Alakula (6-0, 1-0 PFL) made his intentions clear when he knocked out Youssef Uabas with punches in the third round of his welterweight quarterfinal. Uabas (3-1, 0-1 PFL) went down 53 seconds into the third round. Alakula, who is from the American Kickboxing Academy, advances to the 170-pound semifinals to face Diani (8-3, 1-0 PFL), who defeated Amir Fazli (6-2, 0-1 PFL) 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 in his three-round welterweight quarterfinal.
Meanwhile, Al Shirawi (20-6, 3-3 PFL) moved one step closer to a six-figure payday when he submitted Rayan Atmani via rear-naked choke in the first round of his welterweight quarterfinals. Atmani (4-3, 0-1 PFL) surrendered 4 minutes, 20 seconds into the first round. Al Shirawi will face El Dhaflawi (11-6, 1-0 PFL), who defeated Anthony Zeidan (4-2, 0-1 PFL) by 30-25, 30-26, 30-27 unanimous decision in the three-round welterweight quarterfinals in the 170-pound semifinals.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Seifi (5-1, 1-0 PFL) knocked out Josh Togo with punches in the first round of the lightweight quarterfinals. Togo (13-6, 0-1 PFL) succumbed to a strike 3:33 into the first round. Mohamed Seifi, a five-time World Martial Arts Championship gold medalist, will face Tahiri (7-4, 1-0 PFL) in the 155-pound semifinals. Tahiri defeated Ahmed Amir (12-5-1, 0-2 PFL) by unanimous decision 29-27, 29-27, 29-27 in a three-round quarterfinal.
Further down the order, Saleem (6-0, 1-0 PFL) defeated Omar Reguigui via triangle choke in the first round of the lightweight quarterfinals. Reguigui (4-2, 0-1 PFL) was eliminated 90 seconds into the first round. Saleem will face Ade (9-4, 1-0 PFL) in the 155-pound semifinals, where he won by unanimous decision, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27. He faces Abbas Khan (6-3, 0-1 PFL) in the third round quarterfinals.
In other bouts, Mostafa Rashid Nada (9-3, 2-0 PFL) punched out middleweight mainstay Abdel Rahmane Doliai (9-3, 0-1 PFL) 2:34 into the bout. Ziad Ayman (6-1, 1-0) defeated Hadi Omar Al Hussaini (5-1-1, 0-1) via rear-naked choke 4:25 into the third round in a flyweight bout. And in an amateur atomweight bout, Hattan Al-Saif forced Eman Baraka to withdraw between the second and third rounds.
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