The
Professional Fighters League and
Rizin Fighting Federation are set to make history with a fight
that will have two titles on the line.

PFL and Rizin just announced a cross-promotional championship fight
for Super
Rizin 5 on Sept. 10 at Kyosera Dome Osaka in Japan.

Rajabali Shaidullaev and A.J. McKee will fight for both the PFL
and Rizin featherweight championships in Osaka

Rizin Featherweight Champion Rajabali
Shaidullaev (19-0) will face A.J. McKee
(25-2) with both the Rizin and PFL featherweight titles on the
line. Shaidullaev has finished all 19 of his career wins so far, 13
of them in the first round. The undefeated Kyrgyz champion has won
and defended his title thrice in less than a year. Meanwhile, McKee
is currently riding a three-fight winning streak.

“There have been several occasions in the past when a fighter has
entered another organization and challenged for that promotion's
championship,†Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara said in a statement. “This time, however, we are
attempting something unprecedented: placing the championship belts
of both organizations on the line in a single fight hosted by one
promotion.â€

“When I became CEO at PFL, I made it my mission to bring together
the best fighters and deliver the fights that the fans want to
see,†PFL CEO John Martin said. “Now, with this extraordinary
partnership, I can’t wait to honor that promise and bring a truly
unique and fresh opportunity for the MMA community to enjoy. For
me, it will be a special experience as I get to throw my full
support behind one fighter, and I'm looking forward to being cage
side to watch the “Mercenary†bring the titles to PFL.â€

The rest of the Super Rizin 5 card looks like this:
Mikuru
Asakura vs. Shinya
Aoki
Ren
Hiramoto vs. Karshyga
Dautbek
Yutaka
Saito vs. Ren
Sugiyama
Vugar
Karamov vs. Ryo
Takagi
Roberto
Satoshi de Souza vs. Shunta
Nomura
Daichi
Tomizawa vs. Ryo
Kawabata

🚨BREAKING NEWS 🚨@JohnMartinPFL
makes a major announcement!!

September 10th. AJ McKee takes on @rizin_PR
Featheweight Champion Razhabali Shaydullaev as both PFL and RIZIN
Featherweight World Titles are on the line!
pic.twitter.com/WHdMG7o39b

— PFL (@PFLMMA)
July 20, 2026

🔥超ド級カードã€ç¶šã€…決定🔥

9.10 京セラドーム大阪ã§æ¿€çªã€‚
本日発表ã•ã‚ŒãŸå¯¾æˆ¦ã‚«ãƒ¼ãƒ‰ã‚’ãƒã‚§ãƒƒã‚¯ðŸ‘€âš¡ï¸

詳細ã¯ã“ã¡ã‚‰ðŸ‘‡https://t.co/MqxoL8fwXK

ãƒã‚±ãƒƒãƒˆä¸€èˆ¬ç™ºå£²ä¸­â€¼ï¸https://t.co/S0M4DZA7tr#超RIZIN5
🎇 pic.twitter.com/pk2jz64mhZ

— RIZIN FF OFFICIAL (@rizin_PR)
July 20, 2026

Ian
Garry believes defeating
Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Islam
Makhachev at UFC
330 would make his greatness “undeniable.”

The Irish welterweight challenges Makhachev for the 170-pound title
in the UFC 330 headliner on Aug. 15 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in
Philadelphia. Considering the Dagestani champion's accolades,
taking the title off him is a monumental feat, according to
Garry.

Ian Garry views UFC 330 clash with Islam Makhachev as a
career-defining fight

Ahead of their fight, Garry acknowledged the magnitude of the
challenge, calling Makhachev the best fighter in mixed martial arts
today.

“I know how good Islam Makhachev is,†Garry told High Performance.
“I know how talented he is. He's 29-1 in the sport. He's a
two-weight division champion. He's the most successful lightweight
champion of all time and had the most lightweight defenses of all
time. He is the current welterweight champion of the world. He came
up a division and won the title. He is tied for the longest active
win streak in UFC history, and if he wins his next fight against
me, he will break the record for the longest consecutive wins.â€

Despite his appreciation for Makhachev’s accomplishments and
skills, Garry remains confident that his own arsenal is enough to
dethrone the champion. “The Future” claims a victory over Makhachev
would remove any remaining questions about his standing in the
sport.

“When I beat him, there can be no doubt. When I beat him, it is
undeniable that I am great,†he added.

Ian
Garry’s recent comments comparing himself to Conor
McGregor haven't gone over well with Islam
Makhachev’s camp.

After “The Future” compared his upcoming fight in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship against Makhachev to McGregor’s
iconic featherweight championship victory over Jose Aldo,
Makhachev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, responded with a series of
sharp posts on social media.

Ali Abdelaziz addresses Ian Garry's McGregor comparison ahead
of UFC 330

Garry recently claimed that defeating Makhachev at UFC
330 would elevate him to the top of the sport, comparing the
opportunity to McGregor’s featherweight title win over Aldo in
2015.

Abdelaziz, however, dismissed those comparisons and questioned the
Irishman’s accomplishments inside the Octagon.

“I’ve been listening to Islam’s opponent talking,†Abdelaziz wrote
on X. “Here are the facts: He’s 2-1 in his last three fights. He
was almost knocked out by Prates and got saved by the bell. He has
10 wins in the UFC, and eight of them came by decision. Somebody
needs to give this young man a reality check, because he’s about to
get smashed.â€

Abdelaziz followed with another post highlighting Makhachev’s
accolades.

“Islam Makhachev’s last 10 fights? Eight of them ended in
finishes,†the manager posted. “Three of those wins came against
world champions. The rest were against top-five and Top-15
contenders. That’s the reality. You only got this fight because you
know how to talk. On Aug. 14, the talking stops. Then we’ll see
what’s real.â€

Abdelaziz also rejected Garry’s comparisons to McGregor.

“And he keeps bringing his name up, comparing himself to Conor,†he
added. “First of all, you're not Conor. You'll never be Conor. You
might actually be a better person than him, because I think Conor
has done a lot of things I don't respect. Just be who you are.
Don't try to be somebody else.â€

Makhachev is scheduled to defend his welterweight title against
Garry in the UFC 330 main event on Aug. 15 at Xfinity Mobile Arena
in Philadelphia. A win for the Russian not only marks his first
title defense at 170 pounds but would also see him break Anderson
Silva's record for longest win streak in UFC history.

Series of tweets from Ali Abdelaziz on Ian Machado Garry
by u/DavidSeries in
MMA