Professional Fighters League CEO John Martin saw several
fighters make a statement at
PFL Washington D.C.

The PFL put on a show at CareFirst Arena in the American capital,
where Thad Jean
(12-0) and Ernesto
Rodriguez (11-2) fought for the vacant welterweight title in
the main event. Rodriguez accepted the matchup on 48 hours' notice
after Jean's original opponent, Shamil
Musaev, pulled out due to weight cut issues.

The PFL CEO believes Shamil Musaev deserves the next title
shot

Jean survived a knockdown scare in the second round and pounded out
an exhausted Rodriguez to earn a stoppage win in the third period.
Martin appreciates Rodriguez for stepping up to save the main
event, although the Cuban was originally supposed to fight Aaron
McKenzie on the same card. Martin also praised Jean for
accepting a sudden change of opponent and would like to see him
defend his title against Musaev next.

“Let's start with Ernesto… 48 hours ago, he was preparing for a
different fight,†Martin said in an interview. “We approached him,
we gave him a huge opportunity and right on the spot he recognized
it and he wanted to do it. And he fought a pretty courageous fight.
He wasn't training to fight someone who is 6-foot-2 and he also
wasn't training to fight five rounds. Which is a different level of
preparation. You could also say the same about Thad Jean.
Obviously, he came out on top and fought a great fight. But he was
training for Shamil, who is a completely different fighter… I would
like to see him do that fight with Shamil.â€

Martin notes that the event was a great night for African talent as
Nkosi
Ndebele defeated Brandon
Davis via a dominant decision and Eliezer
Kubanza made Chris Mixan
tap to a Brabo choke. He was also impressed with Rasul
Magomedov’s hard-fought decision win over Sullivan
Cauley and Rafael
Xavier's first-round buzzer-beater knockout of Tyson
Pedro.

“Tonight was a good night for PFL Africa,†Martin added. “We had
two African fighters represent, and both of them came out with
really, really stellar victories… And then Magomedov — that was a
close fight, and Cauley fought very valiantly… And Xavier, that was
impressive — also can fight standing up, fight on the ground.
These weight classes are still evolving, but you see nights like
tonight, the winners are really putting themselves in positions for
title contention.â€

What a night in DC!

CEO John Martin
breaks it down 🙌#PFLDC
pic.twitter.com/eIqHfT1rCL

— PFL (@PFLMMA)
July 26, 2026

Rizvan
Kuniev bagged his second win in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship, getting his hand raised at

UFC Abu Dhabi, but he isn't entirely content with his
performance.

Kuniev secured a finish against Tyrell
Fortune at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The back-and-forth
heavyweight clash was later awarded Fight of the Night, with both
heavyweights having their moments before the third-round
stoppage.

Rizvan Kuniev reflects on mistakes after Tyrell Fortune
stoppage at UFC Abu Dhabi

Fortune (18-4) proved to be a solid test for the Russian, who
eventually landed two back-to-back knees to prompt the referee to
intervene. Despite finding a finish, Kuniev (14-3) later admitted
that he expects more from himself moving forward, especially
considering his championship aspirations.

“Of course I made some mistakes,†Kuniev said in a post-fight
interview. “Because I rushed sometimes too fast into the fight, but
we will work it out and as my coach said, I'm on top now. Top 15,
you know. And you cannot make mistakes at this level if you want to
be a champion.â€

Kuniev is now 2-1 in the UFC after earning a contract on
Dana White's Contender Series. He lost his Octagon debut to
former title challenger Curtis
Blaydes before returning to winning ways against Jailton
Almeida.

“I want to be a champion.”

Rizvan
Kuniev collects his second win of the year, stopping Tyrell
Fortune in the third round at
#UFCAbuDhabi.

Main Card Results âž¡ï¸ https://t.co/G3u3aQHGF6@VisitAbuDhabi
| @InAbuDhabi |

#InAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/yFDbEDDOj7

— UFC News (@UFCNews)
July 25, 2026

Ramazonbek
Temirov has highlighted what separates himself from the rest of
the
Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight division.

Temirov delivered a resounding statement against former title
challenger Steve Erceg
at
UFC Abu Dhabi. The Uzbek prospect secured a first-round
knockout, taking his professional record to 20-3. In a post-fight
interview, he discussed the X-factor he possesses at 125
pounds.

Ramazonbek Temirov's knockout ability stands out after UFC Abu
Dhabi win over Steve Erceg

Temirov put his Australian counterpart to sleep with a crushing
right hand in the co-main event of UFC Abu Dhabi, extending his UFC
record to 3-0 and earning a Performance of the Night bonus for his
efforts. Speaking after the victory, he explained why he feels he’s
different from the rest of the division, emphasizing how flyweights
rarely pull off one-shot knockouts as he did against Erceg.

“I haven't seen all the fighters just fighting like me. Just
striking punches, just making knockouts,†he said. “But my punches
will just kill them all.â€

The emphatic finish marked Temirov’s 11th first-round stoppage
victory and 13th overall, further solidifying his reputation as one
of the UFC’s most explosive flyweights. He has now won 12
consecutive fights.

“I haven’t seen other fighters fighting like
me.”

Ramazan Temirov scores an emphatic first-round KO of Steve Erceg
at
#UFCAbuDhabi before calling out Top 10 flyweight Lone’er
Kavanagh.

Main Card Results âž¡ï¸ https://t.co/G3u3aQHGF6@VisitAbuDhabi
| @InAbuDhabi |

#InAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/Jrrezerkty

— UFC News (@UFCNews)
July 25, 2026