The Professional Fighters League`s first-ever event on the African continent is set to happen earlier than initially announced. The league confirmed on Tuesday that the PFL Africa event will now take place on July 19, instead of the previously scheduled date of July 26.
This significant event will unfold at the GrandWest Arena in Cape Town, South Africa, and is structured as a double-header. The second portion of the night is a PFL Champions Series: Road to Dubai event, headlined by a middleweight title defense featuring reigning champion Johnny Eblen against challenger Costello van Steenis.
The co-main event for the Champions Series card will see undefeated flyweight star Dakota Ditcheva compete against Sumiko Inaba.
The first part of the evening, officially named PFL Africa 1, will launch the league’s regional tournaments specifically for the Africa division. This opening night will feature bouts in the heavyweight and bantamweight categories.
PFL Africa 1 Tournament Bouts:
Nkosi Ndebele vs. Mahmoud Atef — bantamweight
Maxwell Djantou Nana vs. Mikael Groguhe — heavyweight
Shannon Van Tonder vs. Boule Godogo — bantamweight
Jashell Ticha Awa vs. Justin Clarke — heavyweight
Antero Dos Santos vs. Karim Henniene — bantamweight
Abdoullah Kane vs. Mohammed Ben Yahia — heavyweight
Simbarashe Hokonya vs. Alain Majorique — bantamweight
Badredinne Medkouri vs. TBD — heavyweight
Juliet Ukah vs. TBD
Notably, the revised July 19 date places the PFL event in direct competition with UFC 318. That UFC card is scheduled to feature a highly anticipated trilogy bout between Max Holloway and Dustin Poirier, which has been billed as Poirier’s potential final fight.
Murray Blackwood