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Brett Okamoto
Multiple Authors
Usman Nurmagomedov made the first official defense of his PFL lightweight championship on Saturday, in a one-sided, third-round submission over England’s Alfie Davis.
Nurmagomedov (21-0) is arguably the best fighter in the world outside the UFC, and he once again looked the part. He dominated Davis on the feet, before taking him down and choking him unconscious with an arm triangle at 4:41 of the third round. The 155-pound title fight headlined PFL’s first event of 2026 at Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai.
“It was a simple game plan,” said Nurmagomedov, who is the cousin of retired MMA legend Khabib Nurmagomedov. “Make him tired, make him work, make him wrestle and the finish is going to come.”
Davis (20-6-1) earned the opportunity to challenge Nurmagomedov by winning the PFL’s World Tournament in 2025, but he looked out of his league from the opening bell. Nurmagomedov went to work on his lower body with kicks and expertly slipped nearly every strike Davis attempted. Davis smiled at Nurmagomedov throughout, but never looked comfortable with Nurmagomedov’s kickboxing range.
Nurmagomedov, who trains alongside UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, is also a former Bellator MMA lightweight champion. He defended that title three times until 2025, when the PFL folded Bellator and consolidated the two rosters.
In the co-main event, former Bellator MMA welterweight champion Ramazan Kuramagomedov (14-0) won the PFL’s vacant welterweight title with a decision victory over Shamil Musaev (20-1-1) — and then announced his shocking retirement from the sport. Kuramagomedov hadn’t fought in nearly two years going into Saturday’s contest, but said he’d decided during fight preparations to retire if he was successful in claiming the PFL championship. The 29-year-old said he suffered a broken arm at some point in the bout, but still managed unanimous 48-46 judges’ scores.