Reigning 185-pound champion Costello van Steenis will put his title on the line in the headline bout when he takes on middleweight world tournament champion Fabian Edwards in a champion-versus-champion battle at Palacio Vistalegre.
The matchup is a rematch of their first meeting back in September 2020, where van Steenis earned a split-decision victory over Edwards over three rounds at Bellator Euro Series 8 in Milan, Italy. Now they’ll do battle over the five-round championship duration, with PFL gold on the line.
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The matchup will see Dutch-Spanish champion van Steenis head to the country he proudly represents as he looks to follow up his dramatic title-winning victory over Johnny Eblen in Cape Town, South Africa in July.
Van Steenis produced one of the come-from-behind wins of 2025 as he locked up a rear-naked choke to force the submission in the final 10 seconds of a five-round title fight he looked to be losing on the scorecard.
Now he’ll put his belt on the line in his first title defence as he faces England’s Edwards, who stunned Dalton Rosta with a brilliant head-kick knockout to capture the PFL middleweight world tournament title.
The finish, which was reminiscent of his older brother’s similarly dramatic UFC welterweight title-winning knockout of Kamaru Usman in Salt Lake City, elevated Edwards to the very top of the middleweight division, and he’ll get the chance to capture a second PFL belt and put himself on top of the world with victory in Spain.
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“We are making history by becoming the first global MMA company to host an event in Spain, and we are going to make it an unforgettable evening of elite action at Palacio Vistalegre on Friday, March 20,” said PFL CEO John Martin.
“Costello van Steenis had a storybook ending in Cape Town with one of the biggest comebacks in the sport’s history, and his tale continues as he comes to Madrid with the flag of Spain on one shoulder, and the world title on the other.
“Edwards is also riding a huge wave of momentum, and also had a massive win in his last fight to win the PFL Tournament Title. With these two at the top of the card, we’re going to stack the rest of the evening and put on an event for the ages.”
