Sherdog Podcast Network

Welcome back to the Fight Business Podcast, Patrick Auger's weekly show dedicated to the business side of mixed martial arts. This week's topics are UFC 271 PPV buys prediction, PFL making new deals, Twitter Mailbag Questions, Adesanya on fighter pay, and unreliable sources for fighter pay.(00:00) Intro(01:52) UFC 271 PPV Buy Prediction(08:32) PFL makes deals with Channel 4 in the UK and also Bruce Buffer's whiskey, Punchers Chance. (19:42) Twitter Mailbag | MMA Media Pay, Ngannou & Fury Pay, How long will the UFC keep the PPV model?(48:51) Adesanya on fighter pay(01:03) Fake pay disclosures from bogus websites

Connor Hughes aims to make his mark and earn a place among his hometown's greatest fighters.Hughes (7-0, 0-0 PFL) takes pride in being the first fighter from Liverpool to sign with the PFL on his path to becoming the best fighter in the world. While he respects the likes of Darren Till, Paddy Pimblett and Molly McCann, and what they did for the city, Hughes is confident his abilities will be more than enough to make his name stand among the best Liverpool mixed martial artist exports. The MMA Academy Liverpool standout is now attached to a lightweight clash with Dylan Tuke at the upcoming PFL Europe 2 event, where Hughes is sure he’ll leave a mark and get a step closer to the $100,000 prize. “I respect ‘em all. Darren Till has done a lot for Liverpool MMA, he brought the UFC to Liverpool. Paddy and Molly are doing their thing, again, another door opener for Liverpool MMA and the city. I respect them all. I respect what they're doing, and I think they're doing good things for the city and for the country, really. I'm here to make my own footsteps and leave my own legacy and do my own thing. I'm not really too focused on anybody else. I wanna make a name for myself and I want people to talk about me when they talk about Liverpool MMA.”(00:00) Intro(00:18) His first journey to Germany for a kickboxing tournament (00:58) Taking up MMA (02:01) His first grappling lessons (02:58) Being the first fighter from Liverpool to sign with the PFL (03:39) Aiming to make his own mark (04:42) Preparing for the toughest test in his career(05:48) Keeping his record unblemished (07:01) His take on the rest of the PFL lightweight division (07:57) His plans for the $100,000 prize(09:10) Aiming to finish his opponent(10:30) Outro

Expect to see some fireworks in Aspen Ladd’s next Professional Fighter League assignment.Ladd (10-4, 1-1 PFL) needs a quick victory to secure a place in the 2023 playoffs and will attempt to score it as she faces Karolina Sobek on June 16. Ultimate Fighting Championship vet Ladd lost to Olena Kolesnyk via majority decision in her first 2023 PFL Regular Season outing. While speaking with Sherdog, Ladd mentioned that her main focus is treating her upcoming clash as a five-minute fight rather than a 15 or 25-minute one. Ladd emphasized the importance of accumulating points in the tournament. At the same time, she acknowledged that she can be a slow starter in fights, stating she needs to overcome that. However, fighting back-to-back and being in a perpetual training camp might help her shake off the slow start sooner.“Honestly, the main focus for me, and I think it’s [the same for] a lot of the girls going into this tournament, is treating it like a five-minute fight. If all my fights were 45 minutes to an hour, I'd end up winning just about most of them because that, endurance-wise, I tend to get better as the fight goes. So trying to treat it as a five-minute fight as opposed to a 15-minute fight or a 25-minute fight is the main focus. Obviously, this is a points tournament, and going into the second round like this, you need to get as many as possible.”(00:00) Intro(00:48) Commenting on the Kolesnyk fight (01:34) Disagreeing with the judges’ decision (02:15) Praising Kolesnyk’s toughness (02:58) Whether was she bothered when Kolesnyk missed weight (03:24) Getting used to the point system(04:28) Enjoying the PFL environment (05:06) Preparing for Sobek(05:48) Being a slow starter(06:41) Celebrating Star Wars Day (07:05) Coping with the perpetual training camp mentality (08:00) Outro

Glover Texeira joins Marcelo Alonso to talk about his upcoming grappling match against Anthony Smith at Fight Pass Invitational on June 29, Alex Pereira's next move; is it light heavyweight or Israel Adesanya trilogy? Glover also gives predictions for the future of the light heavyweight division.Timestamps:(00:00) Fight Pass Invitational grappling match vs. Anthony Smith(01:54) Jamahal Hill vs. Jiri Prochazka Prediction(02:48) UFC 287: Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya 2 Breakdown(04:04) Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya 3 (UFC Trilogy Fight)(04:44) Light Heavyweight debut: Jan Blachowicz, Magomed Ankalaev? (05:46) Benefits of not cutting to middleweight(06:50) Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka Prediction

Rob Wilkinson is pretty satisfied with his victory over fellow Ultimate Fighting Championship alum Thiago Santos at 2023 PFL 1. In his latest assignment, 2022 Professional Fighters League light heavyweight titleholder Wilkinson (18-2, 5-0 PFL) scored a dominant victory over Santos. While he didn’t finish his opponent inside the distance for the first time in his promotional history, “Razor” heavily relied on his wrestling skills to cruise past Santos, taking home a well-deserved unanimous-decision victory. After the fight, Wilkinson confessed fighters like ‘Marreta’ were one of the reasons he thought very carefully before moving up from middleweight to light heavyweight. Santos is well-known for his knockout power, and Wilkinson had to carefully plan his move and understand how to better face fighters like that. “It kind of hit me because, when I got released from the UFC, and I was making the decision to move up to light heavyweight, he was one of the guys that I'd be watching, and he'd be knocking everyone out, and I was kinda like, ‘I don't wanna go up and fight people like that. He's a scary man.’ It kind of hit me after that, at one point, he was a reason I was hesitant to go up to light heavyweight, and then I just fought and beat him. It was a cool experience.”(00:00) Intro (00:57) Commenting on his bruises from the fight(01:28) Whether Santos hits as hard as people say (02:28) Rating his performance (03:19) Praising Santos as one of the best light heavyweights in the world (04:09) Being proud of having defeated Santos (04:55) Showcasing his wrestling skills again (06:03) Whether he got a burger after the fight (06:38) Celebrating his first seasonal victory (07:37) Commenting on Israel Adesanya’s victory over Alex Pereira (08:31) What’s next for him (09:33) Outro

2022 Professional Fighters League featherweight runner-up Bubba Jenkins feels like a different fighter this year and believes his moment to shine has come. Bubba Jenkins (20-6, 6-2 PFL) started the 2023 Regular Season on the right foot after defeating long-term rival Chris Wade in a much-heated rematch. In their first clash, Wade took home the victory after outpointing the “Bad Man” on all scorecards. In their 2023 PFL 1 rematch, former Brave Combat Federation titleholder Jenkins proved his wrestling pedigree was too much to handle for Wade, leading to a unanimous decision victory for the “Bad Man." Now that Jenkins has evened the score with “The Long Island Killer,” he is looking ahead, and while he doesn’t exclude that the rubber match with Wade might happen sooner or later, he is entirely focusing on joining the short-listed club of PFL featherweight champions in the likes of Lance Palmer, Movlid Khaybulaev and Brendan Loughnane. “Any one of those 145-pounders can get it, honestly. I'm in a different platform, “Bad Man” vs. “Bad Man,” like we've been saying. Last year in the finals, our emotions got the best of us. We are looking forward to getting any other 145-pounders that even won or lost. At the end of the day, Movlid and Loughnane are probably the two front runners because they have a belt each, and I don't, so any one of them can get it, but I want it to mean something. I want it to matter. The next round is just a regular season match, so don't make sense to fight one of those guys then, but anybody can get it this year. Man, I'm really in another place.”(00:00) Intro(00:42) Aiming to win the championship this year(00:58) Celebrating his victory (02:47) Defeating Wade(03:43) Being happy for having vindicated the defeat(05:04) Whether Wade has done enough to earn his respect(06:33) His thoughts on the Wade trilogy (07:22) Looking to face Loughnane again (08:24) The story behind his tattoo ‘relentless’ (09:24) Outro

Having been in Professional Fighters League from Day 1, Natan Schulte is keenly aware of how the playoff format works, and he plans to get off to a good start this season.Two-time PFL lightweight titleholder Schulte (23-5-1, 12-2-1 PFL) returns to the cage for the first time this year at 2023 PFL 3 on Friday. “Russo” is one of the PFL originals who has been competing in the promotion since the debut of the season format in 2018, and boasts a total of 15 fights under the PFL banner. In his most recent appearance at the PFL Championships event last November, Schulte forced Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Jeremy Stephens to tap to an arm-triangle choke in the second frame. This year, Schulte aims to become the first three-time champion in promotional history, and it all starts with a quick finish in his season debut. “I'm very happy for this season. I think I'm the fighter who has more fights in the PFL, I’ve been fighting here since 2018, [I have] many, many fights in a couple of years. For this year, I have a good match against Stevie Ray. He’s a very tough guy, and I'm gonna try to finish or knock him out. I'm gonna try to finish. He has very good jiu-jitsu, but for this season, I'm so happy to fight again. This is my work, I love to fight. I love to train. That's it. Let's do it.”(00:00) Intro (00:38) His friendship with Raush Manfio(02:25) Submitting Stephens (03:29) Praising Stephens’ toughness (04:59) His motivation for the 2023 PFL season (06:03) Preparing for Ray (07:12) Commenting on PFL’s evolution over time (09:17) Hoping to face Manfio only in the finals(10:54) Outro

The 2022 Professional Fighters League lightweight champion knows very well his next opponent as he used to bet on his fights. Aubin-Mercier (17-5, 6-0 PFL) aims to keep his promotional record unblemished as he faces Shane Burgos at the upcoming 2023 PFL 3 event on April 14. Since joining the promotion in 2021, “The Canadian Gangster” has never lost a fight. Still, the most significant accomplishment was capturing the belt last year after crushing Steven Ray in the PFL Championships in November. This year, Aubin-Mercier will welcome fellow Ultimate Fighting Championship alum Burgos in a new organization and division. While speaking with Sherdog, Aubin-Mercier confessed he has bet on his opponent several times but ended up losing money after Burgos dropped a unanimous decision to Josh Emmett.“I'm a big fan of Burgos and I saw him fight before. I actually bet for him a lot of time in the UFC. I watch a fight, and he is a really fun guy to watch. I know his style; it's not like I don't know anything about him. Actually, I lost some money. I think I bet for him against Makwan Amirkani because I wanted some money in that fight, but I think I also bet for him against Emmett, and he lost that one.”(00:00) Intro (00:47) Buying a bidet after winning the championship (02:09) Enjoying the off-season (03:13) Whether he’s still considering retiring (04:13) Preparing for Burgos(06:08) Watching much footage of his opponents (07:08) Losing money by betting on Burgos in the past (07:46) His feelings for Las Vegas(09:36) Updates on bringing PFL to Canada (11:00) His Charizard Pokemon card (12:15) Outro

Sadibou Sy finally reached the pinnacle last year, professionally speaking, but his ultimate goal remains in his sights.The 2022 Professional Fighters League welterweight champion (13-6-2, 1 NC; 7-4-2, 1 NC PFL) had his most successful season since signing with the PFL in 2018 as he defeated four opponents in a row in the span of six months, including former Bellator MMA champion Rory MacDonald, to capture the title and $1 million prize. Now, Sy will attempt to replicate that success in the 2023 PFL Regular Season, starting this week against former Brave Combat Federation standout Jarrah Al-Silawi. Ahead of his season debut, Sy told Sherdog his biggest motivation isn’t external, but the constant pursuit of the best version of himself, and he believes he has yet to reach his full potential. “I didn't start fighting because of the money, fame, or whatever. For me, it was just to be able to push myself and see how far I could take it. I believe that you still haven't seen the best of me, and I'm working every day to be able to make myself proud. My goal has always been, if I make myself proud, the rest of the world are gonna be amazed. I'm not thinking about money, I'm just thinking, ‘OK, I need to prepare the best that I can and I'm gonna be better tomorrow than I was today.’ That's my goal. Everything else around it is gonna sort itself out.”(00:00) Intro (00:52) Back in the States (01:51) His journey to Senegal(03:05) His fondest memory from last year (04:18) Being with PFL since Day 1(05:40) His thoughts on Al-Silawi (06:56) Training in Las Vegas (08:01) His four-bout winning streak(09:06) Coming from a kickboxing background (10:35) Differences between training in Sweden and the U.S. (11:54) His motivation for the 2023 season(13:06) Outro

2022 Professional Fighters League lightweight runner-up Steven Ray believes he is not alone in regarding the weigh-in scale as perhaps his most daunting opponent. Things didn’t go according to plans for Ray (25-11, 2-2 PFL) last year, who fell short of capturing the $1 million prize and the PFL Championship after losing to Olivier Aubin-Mercier in November. Still, “Braveheart” scored back-to-back victories over former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Anthony Pettis by making his foe tap to a twister before outpointing “Showtime” on all scorecards. Ahead of his first 2023 PFL Regular Season assignment, Ray confessed that being on a constant diet is one of the biggest challenges, especially for someone like him who loves food. The Scotsman has never missed weight in his career, but admits he strayed far above the lightweight limit during the offseason. “You have good days and bad days, but yeah, it is tough. I'm not the smallest guy for 155. Over Christmas, I went to like 200 pounds, just eating good. I didn't go crazy, but I did eat. It's this unhealthy relationship we fighters have with it. I've done it in the past as well [...] when you have to diet so extreme for so many weeks, and then you get to eat what you want, you want to go crazy. Paddy Pimblett goes huge as well, especially when you're a person that loves food. I love pizza, I love burgers, I love chocolate and ice cream and all that, that I'm not allowed, that I've not had any this year. It's hard not to go crazy when we're allowed to. I got heavy over Christmas and obviously suffered for it this fight camp.”(00:00) Intro (00:51) Losing to Aubin-Mercier(03:26) Being on good terms with Aubin-Mercier (03:51) Postponing his plans to upgrade his gym (04:34) His motivation for the 2023 Season (05:36) The stress of being constantly in camp (06:58) Whether he considered moving up a division (08:21) Being constantly in a calorie deficit (10:29) Preparing for Schulte (11:20) Commenting on Schulte’s fighting style (12:51) What he expects from Schulte (14:46) Outro

Biaggio Ali Walsh has found his path in life and wants to make a living out of mixed martial arts.Ali Walsh is an all-around athlete who tested himself in different disciplines before taking up MMA, including college football, but it seems that fighting in the cage is in his future. After all, combat sports are in his blood since he’s the grandchild of former boxing champion Muhammad Ali. Last year, Ali Walsh signed with the Professional Fighters League a special development contract that allows him to compete on the PFL cards even though he hasn’t made his professional debut yet. The 24-year old made his first promotional appearance in November when he crushed Tom Graesser with a 45-second knockout victory. Now, Ali Walsh is scheduled to take on Isaiah Figueroa in a 155-pound tilt on the 2023 PFL 2 card. Ahead of the fight, Ali Walsh discussed the motivation behind his will to perform so well in the cage and, in general, in life. “I would say just all the love and the support that I get from my family and friends, that's what really motivates me so much is seeing that they believe in me. Even the PFL, for them to even just believe in me and see a future with me, that gives me so much motivation to just do better and get better and be the best at some point in my life. That is ultimately the motivation. Also, I'm very close with God and I talk to God every single day, and I thank Him so much for just the opportunity and everything, all the blessings that I have in my life. God motivates me as well as my family and my friends.(00:00) Intro(00:14) His first PFL victory(01:18) Why faith and religion are big parts of his life (02:38) Fighting runs in his family (03:42) Having found his path in life (04:16) Eating a lot after his victory (04:43) His weight (05:30) Preparing for his next opponent (07:26) How many times he plans to compete in 2023 (08:06) His motivation (09:14) Being Muhammad Ali’s grandchild (10:38) Outro

Former Bellator MMA titleholder Julia Budd believes that a victory over Larissa Pacheco will open important doors for her future. Even though Budd (16-5, 1-2 PFL) is on a two-bout skid, she is confident she can leave a mark on the recently inaugurated Professional Fighters League women’s featherweight division. Last year, “The Jewel” was supposed to face two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time PFL champion Kayla Harrison in July but was forced to pull out of the clash due to injury. Ultimately, she ended the year with back-to-back defeats at the hands of Genah Fabian (who badly missed weight ahead of their tilt) and Aspen Ladd. Now, the Canadian fighter is scheduled to take on 2022 PFL women’s lightweight champion Larissa Pacheco in a 145-pound affair that will headline the upcoming 2023 PFL 3 event. Still, Budd hopes to face Harrison one day. “Hopefully, that's a fight that happens in the future. It was a real bummer because I was training really [well], training camp was going really well, but, yeah, things happen. It didn't happen last year, but I think it will still happen. I always wanna test myself against top competition. There's no easy fights for me. I started out my career fighting the best of the best, it’s something I pride myself in. As soon as they called for Larissa too, right away, I'm like, ‘Yeah, we expected it.’ We were literally like talking about it the week before over and we're like, ‘I bet you that's my first fight,’ and already kinda game planning for it. That's something that's been really motivating for me as well is fighting her right off the bat and planning on making a statement.”(00:00) Intro (01:03) Her motivation ahead of the 2023 PFL Season (02:28) Accepting the fight with Fabian (03:51) Losing to Ladd (05:17) Preparing for Pacheco(06:30) Commenting on Pacheco’s victory over Harrison(07:28) Expecting to face Harrison in the future (08:40) Hoping the Harrison fight takes place at featherweight(09:14 Outro

A rejuvenated Aspen Ladd is ready to become the first queen of the recently inaugurated Professional Fighters League 145-pound division. In her career, Ladd (10-3, 1-0 PFL) struggled on several occasions to make weight, particularly at bantamweight. Ladd opted to move to featherweight after being cut from the Ultimate Fighting Championship roster when she failed to make weight ahead of her scheduled — then scrapped — clash with Sara McMann at UFC Fight Night 210. The decision to move up a division turned out to be the right one and Ladd pocketed a split-decision victory over former Bellator MMA titleholder Julia Budd in their bout in November. Ahead of the 2023 PFL Regular Season, Ladd told Sherdog she feels better than ever and is ready for new challenges, including her upcoming clash with Olena Kolesnyk on April 7.“[I feel] healthy and strong. I’ve had even more time now where I could be settled back into being able to be a featherweight. So much of my life was trying to stay small enough to make 135 and now I don't have to do that. I can be healthy, I could lift weights and allow myself to really fill in as a 45er. I just feel better than ever.”(00:00) Intro (00:16) Her passion for hiking (00:52) Preparing for Kolesnyk (01:28) Defeating Budd (02:21) Moving up to featherweight (03:06) Improving the quality of her life (03:47) Commenting on Budd’s performance (04:13) The judges’ scorecards (04:44) Enjoying fighting again (05:11) Her dogs (05:24) Being a Star Wars nerd (05:47) Taking part in the PFL tournament (06:51) Outro

Olena Kolesnyk takes inspiration from her fellow Ukrainians when it comes to not giving up in the face of adversity.Kolesnyk (7-5, 1 NC; 2-3 PFL) will face a formidable opponent in Ultimate Fighting Championship alum Aspen Ladd on April 7. Still, “Cannon” is ready to do whatever it takes to take home the recently-inaugurated Professional Fighters League 145-pound championship. Last year, Kolesnyk lost to eventual champ Larissa Pacheco in the lightweight playoffs after the Brazilian stopped her with punches. This year, Kolesnyk hopes to meet her longtime rival in the featherweight final. Whenever she feels she lacks motivation, she thinks about what her people are going through to keep pushing. “My huge motivation, of course, is to bring the belt to my country and give people hope about never give up no matter what. When I look at my guys, even if I'm really tired after my trainings, I just check my WhatsApp, I check my Instagram and I see the new video which they sent to me. You cannot give up. Go to the gym again. These people protect your family, your mother and sister are still alive because of them. Go work hard. My main motivation is to give hope and to bring the belt to Ukraine.”(00:00) Intro(00:33) Preparing for Ladd (01:11) Aiming to win the championship (01:34) Focusing on her ground game (02:27) Competing at 145 pounds (03:09) Besting her opponents (04:38) Hoping to face Pacheco in the finals (04:50) Having anticipated Pacheco would defeat Harrison (05:51) Updates on Ukraine’s situation (09:03) Her motivation ahead of the 2023 PFL Regular Season (10:25) Outro

Professional Fighters League heavyweight Yorgan De Castro won’t back down from anything, especially if the future of his daughter is at stake. De Castro (9-3) caught the PFL’s attention after taking home a victory over former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Junior dos Santos in their clash in the Eagle FC 47 headliner. De Castro, a UFC alum himself, is one of the most interesting additions to the PFL heavyweight roster. In his promotional debut, “The Mad Titan” was supposed to face 2022 PFL titleholder Ante Delija before “Walking Trouble” pulled out of the fight. Now, De Castro will take on Denis Goltsov on April 7. Ahead of his assignment, De Castro confessed that one of his biggest motivations for winning the $1 million prize was securing a future for his daughter to go to college.“I grew up very poor, very humble. I’ve never imagined to make that kind of money. If I get that money, it would be like… I mean, I don't even know. This sport is very hard. Not everybody is gonna make it. If you wanna take away something from me and I hope I can get away with some money so I can get some house, save money for my daughter to go to the college. This is a hard sport man. There's many fighters that been here forever and in the end of their career they have to go get a job, they’re broke. I don't want 'em to happen to me. I wanna secure some types of investment and be secure in a couple years so I can, I can say, 'Man, this sport was hard, but it gave me this and that.’”(00:00) Intro(00:33) Preparing for his PFL debut(01:10) Defeating dos Santos (02:18) His thoughts on his previously scheduled opponent, Delija (02:59) Looking to score a knockout(03:16) Signing with PFL (04:16) Competing multiple times in the same year (05:07) His weight (06:03) Staying at heavyweight (07:23) What he’s going to do with the $1 million prize in case of victory(09:03) Outro

Renan Ferreira is eager to start the Professional Fighters League 2023 Regular Season on the right foot. Things didn’t go according to plan for Ferreira (9-3, 2NC; 3-1, 2NC PFL) in 2022 when he was stopped by Ante Delija’s punches in the playoffs of last year’s season. While speaking with Sherdog, “Problema” stated he would welcome a rematch with Delija as Ferreira is sure things would go differently. But before he can lock horns with “Walking Trouble” again, Ferreira has to overcome Rizvan Kuniev in their upcoming clash at 2023 PFL 2 on April 7. Ferreira also talked about his training camp, his motivations for the new season, and more, stressing he aims to have a quick night at the office and finish Kuniev inside the distance. “I'm working very hard to improve as a fighter, to fill the holes in my game and, of course, I think about the finish. I'll be trying very hard to get the finish in this fight.”(00:00) Intro(00:33) Taking on Kuniev(01:14) His sparring partners at American Top Team (03:11) Mentioning soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo (06:00) His loss to Delija (07:02) Aiming to finish Kuniev (08:08) Outro

2022 Professional Fighters League 145-pound kingpin Brendan Loughnane believes he has found the best place for him at this point of his career.Loughnane (25-4, 8-1 PFL) punctuated a perfect season in 2022 by winning the championship at the end of a road that saw him defeating Ryoji Kudo, Ago Huskic, and Chris Wade. In the finals, the British athlete crushed Bubba Jenkins with a punches-and-knee combination in the fourth stanza. In addition to the title, Loughnane also pocketed a $1 million prize. Ahead of the 2023 PFL Season, Loughnane confessed money is still a big motivation in his career, but he also wants to build up his legacy. Loughnane will return to the cage as he takes former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Marlon Moraes in the 2023 PFL 1 headliner. While talking with Sherdog, Loughnane stated he’s delighted to fight in the PFL, as their relationship has been mutually beneficial. “I'm glad because I bounced around a lot earlier in my career. Lots of different promotions, but I'm glad I set myself in one now. We’ve built together, we've grown together. It's great to see all these U.K. fighters joining now. PFL are great company to fight for and nothing but respect for them.”(00:00) Intro (00:53) Training at the UFC P.I., among other places(01:18) His motivation for the fight with Moraes (02:34) Training in Thailand (03:47) Commenting on the evolution of the UK movement (04:19) Why he opts to often train outside the UK (05:23) Not having an off-season (06:15) The best place he visited during his on-the-road trip in the U.S. (07:20) Being one of the PFL veterans (08:05) Looking forward to the PFL Europe events (09:26) Outro

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Marlon Moraes looks to bounce back from a five-bout skid at the expense of Brendan Loughnane. Moraes (23-11-1, 0-1 PFL) isn’t in the best moment of his career, but he believes he has all it takes to take on a victory over 2022 PFL featherweight champion Loughnane. “Magic” looked good in the first two frames of his latest outing before ending on the losing side of a technical knockout loss at the hands of Sheymon Moraes. Still, the former World Series of Fighting 135-pound champion proved he’s still a tough bone to bite for anyone in the PFL featherweight division. Ahead of his bout with Loughnane, Moraes told Sherdog he is optimistic about the adjustments he made in his training camp and has the right mentality to break the losing skid. “it's not easy to face that, to be coming from a losing streak, but we have to be positive. You have to look at my career as a whole and what I did for the sport and what I'm still doing and how I look in training, how I look against the best in the world, and then face it. That's what I have, and that's where I think I belong. Now it's a matter of going out there and proving it. I'm still out there and still can hang out with the best.”(00:00) Intro (00:32) Commenting on his MMA return(02:29) Preparing for Loughnane(03:10) Being on a five-bout skid(04:01) The adjustments he made(04:27) Putting on a show for the fans on April 1 (04:52) Being the former WSOF champion (05:58) Moving up at featherweight(06:40) Outro

Professional Fighters League veteran Chris Wade learned not to get distracted by trash-talking ahead of a fight. Wade (22-8, 10-5 PFL) is one of the PFL “original gangsters” who were part of the roster when the promotion launched its format in 2018. Four seasons and five years later, “The Long Island Killer” is still chasing his dream to become the promotional champion and win the much-coveted $1 million prize. Last year, Wade went as far as the playoffs, where he lost a hard-fought battle with Brendan Loughnane via unanimous. On that occasion, Wade confessed that he paid too much attention to some extra-cage stuff that interfered with his performance. This year, Wade is scheduled to take on long-term rival Bubba Jenkins once more after defeating the “Bad Man” via decision in 2021. Jenkins has already started his mind games to throw off his adversary, but Wade won’t be distracted by anything this time. “At the end of the day, me and him, we're still gonna fight. They're gonna lock the cage so it doesn't pay to get all wound up beforehand. Whether he likes me or he doesn't like me or I like him or I don't like him, personally, it changes nothing. And that's something that I feel I added to my mentality this year is… I don't need to have a fight with him for three weeks beforehand in order to perform my best. What I need to do is focus on what his abilities are in there so that then when they lock the cage, I'm my best self instead of worrying about nonsense, like, ‘He says he could take you down,’ or whatever the case may be. I'll just leave it at the fact that I have a lot of respect for what he's accomplished, especially in his wrestling career.”(00:00) Intro(00:26) Being one of the PFL veterans(01:54) Commenting on his move to featherweight(03:35) Making videos online (04:52) Polishing his skills (06:05) His rivalry with Loughnane(08:11) His relationship with Jenkins(10:48) What he expects from Jenkins this time (12:33) Foreseeing the same outcome(13:24) Outro

Rob Wilkinson is ready to do whatever it takes to keep the Professional Fighters League championship in Australia.In 2022, Wilkinson (17-2, 4-0 PFL) made history after becoming the first PFL champion fighting out of Australia in promotional history. “Razor” cut through his opponents Bruce Souto, Viktor Pasta and Delan Monte before smashing Omari Akhmedov at the PFL championships event in November. On that occasion, Akhmedov was forced to retire by the cageside physician after taking much punishment in two rounds. Now, Wilkinson is looking to inaugurate the upcoming 2023 PFL Regular Season with a victory as he faces former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Thiago Santos on April 1. While talking with Sherdog, Wilkinson expressed his excitement for the battle ahead of him, even if he doesn’t think his adversary is the same as he used to be.“I'm very excited about this fight. I remember when I found out that he signed with the PFL last year before I won the title. I was excited because he is a big name. He's a big name, a former challenger of the title in the UFC. He's been in the top 10 for years and has been fighting pretty much the top five guys in the world over and over and over again. It's a really good chance for me to show how good I am and actually start getting in some of those rankings and some of that respect of being one of the best light heavyweights in the world. I'm just getting better and going into my prime. No disrespect to him, but I don't think he's the same fighter he used to be.”(00:00) Intro(00:33) Winning the 2022 PFL championship(01:51) Defeating Akhmedov(02:56) Training in the U.S.(04:00) Josh Fremd’s shoutout(05:08) Being the first PFL champion from Australia(06:02) Celebrating the victory(07:16) Preparing for Santos(09:09) Finishing his opponents(09:58) Outro