On the main card of the PFL World Championships this Saturday from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a new lightweight champion will be crowned. For the first time since 2021, someone not named Olivier Aubin-Mercier will be lightweight champ. In a battle of Bellator vets, former lightweight champion Brent Primus (15-3, 1 NC) will take on Gadzhi Rabadanov (23-4-2).
To the point above, the PFL lightweight season was wide open in 2024 after two-time defending champion OAM announced his retirement. That long with the infusion of fresh faces from Bellator made the 2024 lightweight season very compelling.
Starting with the 39-year-old Brent Primus, it’s been a long journey to get to this spot. He signed with Bellator in 2013 when he only had two professional fights. He won his first five matchups with the promotion and then defeated Michael Chandler to become lightweight champ. He did lose in their rematch, but he’s had a very solid career.
At Bellator 300 last year, he lost a lightweight title fight against Usman Nurmagomedov. The fight was overturned to a No Contest due to a Nurmagomedov drug test. After the PFL acquisition, Primus moved over to the regular season and went 3-0 which included a semifinal win over promotional favorite Clay Collard.
Standing across from his is a fellow Bellator vet in Rabadanov. After a 8-3-2 start to his professional career, Rabadanov won six straight fights including one stop in the PFL. He lost a title fight in Eagle FC, but then he signed with Bellator. He went 5-0 with the promotion and then that brought him back to the PFL where he went 3-0 this year to earn this opportunity.
PFL Championship Prediction
This is a very interesting matchup for the lightweight title and to me, it’s going to come down to one thing. That thing is the wrestling of Brent Primus. I think Primus can hold his own on the feet, but the striking advantage lies with Rabadanov here. If they are striking throughout the five rounds, Rabadanov is going to win this fight.
That said, can Brent Primus get timely takedowns and have enough control to steal some rounds? I think he’s fully capable of doing that, but I’m not comfortable enough to predict that he’ll do that enough to win this fight. I think this is one of the closer matchups on the PFL World Championships card and I think it will be a close decision.
Wouldn’t shock me at all to see a split decision here. Ultimately, I like Rabadanov to win the lightweight championship. I think he’ll be able to defend enough takedowns to keep things standing enough to win three rounds. Don’t feel great about the pick, but I’m going with Rabadanov.
Prediction: Gadzhi Rabadanov by Decision