Outside Source
Per a press release on Thursday, the PFL has finalized its 12-fight lineup for the May 23 show at the ING Arena in Brussels, Belgium. PFL Brussels will be headlined by a non-title, non-tournament main event pitting undefeated Belgian up-and-comer Patrick Habirora (8-0) against 42-year-old former champion Benson Henderson (30-12).
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Making his pro debut in January 2024, Habirora has rattled off eight victories, seven inside the distance, including four under the PFL Europe banner. The 25-year-old exploded onto the PFL scene last year thanks to a pair of first-round knockouts of Danny Roberts and Kevin Jousset. He has only fought beyond the first round twice as a professional.
While Habirora got his start at the beginning of 2024, it has been since March 2023 that Henderson has stepped inside of an MMA cage to fight. “Smooth” did participate in grappling matches as well as a stop off in Karate Combat to handle some business with past foe Anthony Pettis. He also tested his mettle in an influencer boxing tournament where he won a decision against Chris Avila but lost on the scorecards later that night to Idris Virgo for the organization’s inaugural belt.
Of note, the PFL added a welterweight scrap to the prelims, bringing back once-beaten Khamzat Abaev (5-1) to face grappling aficionado Luca Poclit (10-2). The former debuted with the PFL last year, going the distance and also losing for the first time to Chequina Noso Pedro. Since Poclit’s last bout in June 2024, Abaev has competed thrice.
PFL Brussels complete lineup:
Patrick Habirora vs. Benson Henderson – welterweight
Taylor Lapilus vs. Jake Hadley – bantamweight
Boris Mbarga Atangana vs. Jared Gooden – middleweight
Marcirley Alves vs. Naoki Inoue – bantamweight
Asael Adjoudj vs. Keisuke Sasu – featherweight
Donegi Abena vs. Joe Schilling – light heavyweight
Baris Adiguzel vs. Gustavo Oliveira – bantamweight
Amin Ayoub vs. Tim Wilde – lightweight
Movsar Ibragimov vs. Youssouf Binate – bantamweight
Khamzat Abaev vs. Luca Poclit – welterweight
Adam Meskini vs. Keweny Lopes – featherweight
Rustam Serbiev vs. Ashley Reece – welterweight
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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