The light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions took centre stage at Universal Studios in Florida, with Davis closing the show in style with a huge right hand as he knocked out the Australian 51 seconds into the second round.
Davis’ win was the perfect way to reintroduce himself as the 40-year-old veteran ended 23-month hiatus in spectacular fashion to propel himself into the PFL’s light heavyweight semi-finals.
He’ll take on Sullivan Cauley, who earned his spot in the final four with a first-round finish of Bellator veteran Alex Polizzi on the early card.
The second light heavyweight semi-final will see England’s Simeon Powell take on Brazilian veteran Antonio Carlos Jr.
Powell punished Sweden’s Karl Albrektsson with a succession of nasty elbows and punches to force the second-round TKO finish, while Carlos squeaked past Karl Moore by split decision after three competitive rounds in their light heavyweight matchup.
At heavyweight, former interim Bellator heavyweight champion Valentin Moldavsky progressed to the semi-finals with a unanimous decision victory over Sergey Bilostenniy. He’ll face off with Alexandr Romanov, who submitted former Bellator heavyweight veteran Tim Johnson in the first round via standing guillotine choke.
The second heavyweight semi-final will pit Brazil’s Rodrigo Nascimento against Oleg Popov after both men claimed split-decision victories in their respective matchups. Nascimento edged Abraham Bably, while Popov earned his victory against Karl Williams.
PFL World Tournament: Official results
MAIN CARD
- Phil Davis def. Rob Wilkinson via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 0:51
- Valentin Moldavsky def. Sergey Bilostenniy via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Antonio Carlos Jr. def. Karl Moore via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Simeon Powell def. Karl Albrektsson via TKO (elbows) – Round 2, 2:05
EARLY CARD
- Alexandr Romanov def. Tim Johnson via submission (standing guillotine choke) – Round 1, 1:53
- Oleg Popov def. Karl Williams via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Sullivan Cauley def. Alex Polizzi via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:36
- Rodrigo Nascimento def. Abraham Bably via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
PFL World Tournament: Semi-final bouts
- Rodrigo Nascimento vs. Oleg Popov – heavyweight
- Alexandr Romanov vs. Valentin Moldavsky – heavyweight
- Phil Davis vs. Sullivan Cauley – light heavyweight
- Simeon Powell vs. Antonio Carlos Jr – light heavyweight
