Magomed Magomedkerimov avoided the power of Ray Cooper III and locked in a second-round submission to win the PFL welterweight championship and $1 million prize in the main event of PFL 11.
The welterweight playoff final was the main event of today’s PFL 11 show at Hulu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York. It aired on NBCSN. Magomedkerimov (23-5) tapped Cooper III (17-5) with a guillotine choke.
Cooper III came out of the gate throwing absolute haymakers in Magomedkerimov’s direction. The Russian stayed composed, though, and when Cooper III took a misstep, he jumped on the back and instantly started working for a rear-naked choke. It looked like he had the fight finished, but Cooper III somehow peeled the hands of his opponent from around his neck and escaped the submission. He would eventually work his way back to his feet and continue to throw big punches, but Magomedkerimov kept smart and avoided taking anything clean. He landed a couple shots of his own, but Cooper III did his best to make it a closer round with his offensive pressure.
Cooper III went right back to his power-punches to begin the second frame. He chased after Magomedkerimov with big punches, but again he couldn’t find the perfect range to land anything clean. Cooper III changed levels for a takedown in the midst of an exchange, and that move would prove to be his undoing. Magomedkerimov jumped on a guillotine choke and locked it in tight. Cooper III tried to fight it off, but he was forced to tap out at the 2:18 mark of Round 2.
Magomedkerimov derailed the momentum of a fighter many considered to be one of the top breakthrough fighters of 2018 and closed out PFL’s inaugural season with the welterweight championship and seven-figure prize.
“I feel very good after the win,” Magomedkerimov said through an interpreter during his post-fight interview with Carolyn Pierce. “Everything went well and I finished him. I thought it would be the third round, but it was the second and I’m very happy.”
Up-to-the-minute PFL 11 results include:
- Magomed Magomedkerimov def. Ray Cooper III via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 2:18 – to win welterweight title
- Philipe Lins def. Josh Copeland via TKO (strikes) – Round 4, 0:30 – to win heavyweight title
- Sean O’Connell def. Vinny Magalhaes via TKO (corner stoppage) – Round 3, 5:00 – to win light heavyweight belt
- Kayla Harrison def. Moriel Charneski via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:39
- Natan Schulte def. Rashid Magomedov via unanimous decision (48-46, 48-46, 48-46) – to win lightweight title
- Lance Palmer def. Steven Siler via unanimous decision (50-43, 50-45, 49-46) – to win featherweight title
- Louis Taylor def. Abusupiyan Magomedov via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 0:33 – to win middleweight title
For complete coverage of PFL 11, check out the MMA Events section of the site.
from MMAjunkie http://bit.ly/2VmU3PG
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