Kasanganay was in action in the co-main event of PFL 5, which took place at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the 2023 world champ showcased his hand speed and punch power to stop the 2023 European champion in an impressive display that saw him overcome some early adversity before stopping the Slovenian contender at the end of the second round of their 205-pound clash.
His TKO victory meant Kasanganay topped the light heavyweight standings after the regular season, and will move on to face the fourth seed, Josh Silveira, who faced an anxious wait to confirm his playoff spot after losing a split decision to 2022 champion Rob Wilkinson earlier in the night.
However, when Nedoh failed to secure the quick stoppage win he needed to gatecrash the playoffs and bump Silveira from the final four, the American’s place was secured, and he’ll face Kasanganay in a rematch of last season’s light heavyweight season final.
The other side of the bracket will see second seed, Australia’s Wilkinson, take on the third seed, Turkmenistan’s Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov, who secured his spot in the playoffs with a shutout decision victory over Simon Biyong.
The lightweight division was also in action in Salt Lake City, with former Bellator lightweight champion Brent Primus securing the top seed for the playoffs with a third-round submission win over Solomon Renfro.
He’ll face the man who lost out in the night’s main event. Utah born and bred Clay Collard hoped to close out the show in style, but despite a strong performance, he found himself outgrappled through the second and third rounds by Denmark’s Mads Burnell, who fought smartly to secure his first points of the season. However, his unanimous decision victory wasn’t enough to earn him a spot in the final four.
Despite his defeat, Collard remained in the playoff places, thanks to his second-round TKO of Patricky Pitbull in the first round of regular season bouts in April.
With Primus and Collard set to face off on one side of the lightweight bracket, the other half will see Gadzhi Rabadanov take on Canada’s Michael Dufort. Rabadanov earned the third seed with a unanimous decision win over Elvin Espinoza, while Dufort held on to secure the third seed by virtue of his second-round submission win over Burnell back in April.
PFL 5: Official results
MAIN CARD
- Mads Burnell def. Clay Collard via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Impa Kasanganay def. Jakob Nedoh via TKO (doctor stoppage) – Round 2, 5:00
- Bruno Miranda def. Patricky Pitbull via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
- Rob Wilkinson def. Josh Silveira via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
- Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov def. Simon Biyong via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Alex Polizzi def. Antonio Carlos Jr by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Brent Primus def. Solomon Renfro via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 3:21
- Sadibou Sy def. Andrew Sanchez via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 4:02
- Gadzhi Rabadanov def. Elvin Espinoza via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Adam Piccolotti def. Michael Dufort via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
- Sergio Cossio def. Anthony Romero via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Brahyan Zurcher def. Julian Ruiz via knockout (punch) – Round 2, 1:26
PFL Playoffs: Confirmed matchups
AUGUST 2, NASHVILLE
- Denis Goltsov (1) vs. Tim Johnson (4) – heavyweight semi-final
- Oleg Popov (2) vs. Valentin Moldavsky (3) – heavyweight semi-final
- Dakota Ditcheva (1) vs. Jena Bishop (4) – women’s flyweight semi-final
- Liz Carmouche (2) vs. Taila Santos (3) – women’s flyweight semi-final
AUGUST 16, HOLLYWOOD, FL
- Impa Kasanganay (1) vs. Josh Silveira (4) – light heavyweight semi-final
- Rob Wilkinson (2) vs. Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov (3) – light heavyweight semi-final
- Brent Primus (1) vs. Clay Collard (4) – lightweight semi-final
- Gadzhi Rabadanov (2) vs. Michael Dufort (3) – lightweight semi-final
