Almost three years to the day after his brother Leon scored a head-kick knockout to win the UFC welterweight title, Fabian Edwards captured a title belt of his own, using exactly the same technique.
Edwards produced one of the best finishes of his career to starch Dalton Rosta and capture the middleweight PFL World Tournament crown in Hollywood, Florida.
After a bad-tempered build-up, the main event saw both men step into the cage to back up their words, and it was Edwards who silenced Rosta in stunning fashion with a spectacular head-kick knockout in the third round.
The matchup started out in the stand-up as both men looked to establish their range, with Edwards working smartly from distance with range-finding leg kicks and counter punches, while Rosta looked to connect with heavy overhands that Edwards did well to avoid.
Rosta eventually switched to his biggest weapon, his wrestling, to land the first takedown of the fight, but Edwards swiftly got back to his feet, with the American unable to maintain control on the ground. After limited success with his first takedown, Rosta made his second one count, as he slammed Edwards to the mat in the centre of the cage. But, despite the high-impact takedown, Edwards once again fought his way back to his feet.
The action cranked up a notch as Round 2 got underway as Rosta blitzed in with a wild flurry of punches, while Edwards countered in retreat. Rosta’s expected strength advantages in the clinch wasn’t too apparent as Edwards matched him against the cage. Rosta later managed to drag Edwards to the mat, but once again Edwards was able to fight his way back to his feet.
As the fighters returned to their corners after the second round, the PFL commentary team offered the opinion that Rosta had done enough to take both of the first two rounds. But, in the third round, Edwards struck.
With his corner urging him to take things “up a gear”, Edwards upped his output and started to make his strikes count against Rosta. And, with Edwards’ range fully set, he unleashed a picture-perfect left high kick to the head that knocked out Rosta instantly.
It was a carbon copy of the head-kick his older brother Leon used to knock out Kamaru Usman to capture the UFC welterweight title, and it sparked wild celebrations from his corner, including Leon himself.
After coming to, a crestfallen Rosta showed his sportsmanship and class as he congratulated an emotional Edwards on his win, before Edwards was presented with his belt and declared the middleweight tournament champion. He then had a brief, respectful face-off with PFL middleweight world champion Costello Van Steenis, who he’ll face for the world title in his next fight.
In addition to the middleweight tournament crown, the tournament champions at heavyweight and light heavyweight were also decided.
Oleg Popov edged Alexandr Romanov via split decision to claim the heavyweight prize, while at 205 pounds, Antonio Carlos Jr. submitted Sullivan Cauley in the second round.
PFL World Tournament: Official results
MAIN CARD
- Fabian Edwards def. Dalton Rosta via knockout (head kick) – Round 3, 1:28
- Oleg Popov def. Alexandr Romanov via split decision (49-46, 48-47, 47-48)
- Antonio Carlos Jr. def. Sullivan Cauley via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:44
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Alexei Pergande def. Ethan Goss via submission (D’Arce choke) – Round 1, 3:52
- Lazaro Dayron def. Bryce Meredith via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 4:06
- Impa Kasanganay def. Andrew Sanchez via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 4:31
- Rasul Magomedov def. Guilherme Viana via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Sergey Bilostenniy def. Karl Williams via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:11
- Josh Silveira def. Murad Ramazanov via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jean-Pierre Saint Louis def. Tyler Ray via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
