Paul Hughes will compete on home soil for the second time in less than 12 months, as the PFL has booked the Irish lightweight another main event in Belfast.
Hughes (14-3) will headline PFL Belfast on April 16 against New Zealand’s Jay Jay Wilson. PFL CEO John Martin broke news of the event, which will take place at SSE Arena, to ESPN on Monday.
“I’m really excited about this event,” Martin said. “I met with Paul a couple times and we talked about bringing him to another city, but he said if he could ever fight in Belfast again, that would be his dream. I’m happy we were able to make it happen. This lightweight division is a deep one for us. Hughes is looking to get back on track, and Jay Jay will have an opportunity to play spoiler in Paul’s backyard. I think that makes for a super fun fight.”
Hughes, who lives and trains in Belfast, challenged defending PFL champion Usman Nurmagomedov twice in 2025 — coming up short in January and October via unanimous decisions. Between those two appearances, Hughes headlined an event at SSE Arena against Bruno Miranda, where he delivered a stunning 42-second knockout for the home crowd.
Wilson (11-2) will be seeking the biggest win of his MMA career. He’s well-experienced, with a 9-2 record in Bellator MMA dating back to 2018. He took a step back in title contention in his last appearance, dropping a unanimous decision to PFL’s No. 3-ranked lightweight contender Archie Colgan. He has recorded finishes in eight of his 11 career wins.