Pedro Carvalho is far from satisfied with how his PFL debut went.
The Bellator veteran suffered a first-round TKO loss to Brendan Loughnane in the co-main event of the 2024 PFL 3 event on Friday. Carvalho (13-9) was hurt early by Loughnane (28-5) but fought back. In the final sequence, Loughnane took a shot on a downed Carvalho, and as Carvalho looked for a takedown, referee Kevin McDonald waved to stop the fight. Carvalho immediately stood up and protested this call.
SBG Ireland Products was upset by the call and said McDonald’s had admitted it had made the wrong call. McDonald’s has not issued an official statement.
“A great week and experience (in the PFL) ended with a very bitter taste for something I thought would never happen to me and one of the worst interruptions I’ve ever seen,” Carvalho said on Instagram. “It’s become one,” he posted. “I have particular respect for referee Kevin McDonald, who is an honorable man and came up to me after the game and apologized and admitted that he had ruined the game.
“It really hurts, especially with the points system now, the chances of us making the playoffs are very low, but I’m still going to find a way out of this situation.
I’m going to focus on how grateful I am to be able to live what I dreamed of and do the things I always dreamed of as a child.
I’m going to continue to work and concentrate, and I hope that the outcome of my next fight depends only on me… Thank you everyone for your support, it means so much!! ❤️ ”
Carvalho is currently on a three-game losing streak. He has 0 points in the PFL 2024 Featherweight season and has one match left to qualify for the playoffs. Loughnane, on the other hand, earned six points at the end of the first round and moved closer to qualifying for the play-offs.
Loughnane also expressed his opinion on the cancellation of the match, saying the opposite of Carvalho. He believes Carvalho was seriously injured and that MacDonald made the right decision.
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