PFL 2025 World Tournament Welterweight, Featherweight Finals Set

Here's your 2025 #PFLWorldTournament welterweight final: Thad Jean vs. Logan Storley pic.twitter.com/W6VmKEkBxP

— Sherdog (@sherdogdotcom) June 13, 2025

Thad Jean took his next step towards Professional Fighters League stardom Thursday night after defeating former Bellator MMA welterweight champion Jason Jackson by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 27-30) in the 2025 PFL World Tournament 5: Semifinals main event from Nashville Municipal Auditorium.

This fight was heavily anticipated and for good reason. Jean, a young, explosive contender, had yet to face an opponent as seasoned and accomplished as Jackson, and many wondered how he’d handle himself. Jean set the tempo in Round 1 by dropping Jackson on his back with a stiff jab. Jackson composed himself and forced Jean into wrestling exchanges throughout the rest of the period, but Jean showcased his strength by getting the match back to the feet.

The two would trade momentum throughout the rest of the bout. Jackson carried the edge in the grappling department, but Jean’s power was evident in the striking field. Jackson landed shots on the younger challenger and gave him the toughest fight of his career. It was anybody’s guess who would win and you could hear a pin drop as the scorecards were read. Alas, Jean’s strong start and crispy combos were enough to edge out Jackson’s well-rounded effort on the cards in the fight of the night.

With the win, Jean (10-0) moved on to the welterweight finale to face another accomplished wrestler, former Bellator titleholder Logan Storley.

Quiet Pinedo Has Loud Finish

For a fighter nicknamed “The Mute,” Jesus Pinedo’s hands do a lot of talking.

The 2023 PFL featherweight champion demolished archrival Gabriel Braga in the first round of their rubber match (1:16) to secure his spot in the tournament finale. Pinedo starched Braga in three rounds last time out but didn’t even need three minutes in Thursday’s co-main event. Using his superior height and reach, Pinedo walked the charging Braga into a right hook that flattened the Brazilian flat on his back. Braga has proven to be one of the PFL’s best featherweights, but Pinedo is a stylistic nightmare. He’s powerful, awkward and blessed with a granite chin.

The featherweight finale between Pinedo and Movlid Khaybulaev should be an elite clash of styles.

Related » 2025 PFL 5 Round-by-Round Scoring

Storley All Business Against Kikuiri

Storley punched his ticket to the welterweight final by outwrestling Masayuki Kikuiri over three rounds en route to a unanimous decision win (30-27, 29-27, 29-28). Storley, a former Bellator titleholder and four-time NCAA D1 All-American wrestler, proved his pedigree against the Japanese combatant.

Kikuiri found success when he kept his distance and even had Storley wobbled in the second round. Storley would weather the storm and drag Kikuiri back to the mat and control him till the final bell.

Khaybulaev Back in Finals

PFL 2021 featherweight champion Khaybulaev is one win away from reclaiming his crown after defeating Tae Kyun Kim by unanimous decision in the semifinals (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

Kim was frustrated as he struggled to break Khaybulaev’s python-like grip. The Russian dominated all three rounds with his control time, unbreakable clinch and position-breaking leg strikes. Ultimately, it was a risk-free performance from Khaybulaev, but he once again proved that he can shut down the best strikers in his division.

Borics Edges Kennedy

Featherweight vet Adam Borics bounced back from his quarterfinal loss to Jesus Pinedo with a majority decision win over Canada’s Jeremy Kennedy.

Kennedy (29-28, 28-28, 29-28) and Borics are two seasoned vets with 50 professional fights between them, and you could sense the level of respect between the former foes. Borics defeated Kennedy in 2021 and went 2-0 in the series by landing clean long-range punches. Kennedy successfully closed the distance and kept control for periods of time, but never advanced position or threatened a submission.

Umalatov Rebounds Against Ivy

Magomed Umalatov was the toast of the PFL welterweight division last season before he was starched in the championship finale. The formally unbeaten Eagles MMA product has waited patiently for redemption and it would come Thursday night in the form of a beautiful first round knockout over Anthony Ivy (2:28).

Ivy (15-8) started aggressive and even caught Umalatov with a hard right hand over a lazy jab, but the San Antonio native became overzealous. Ivy charged toward Umalatov and threw an out of range jumping knee that Umalatov read like a children’s book. Umalatov punished Ivy’s aggression with a picture perfect left hook that left Ivy flat on his face, giving Umalatov (18-1) his 13th career knockout.

Shields Dominates Luciano

American Top Team welterweight Sarek Shields impressed in his PFL debut, ragdolling Jospeh Luciano for three rounds en route to a unanimous decision win (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

Luciano had no answers for Shields wrestling and was forced to operate from guard for most of the fight. Shields didn’t inflict tons of damage but his sheer control was too much to ignore.

Surging St. Louis Puts Away Berkhamov

Kendly St. Louis notched the biggest win of his career after submitting Mukhamed Berkhamov in the third round of their welterweight clash (3:21). Berkhamov was eliminated from the 2025 World Tournament by St. Louis’ teammate Thad Jean earlier this year, but instead of knocking Berkhamov out, St. Louis handed him his first career submission loss with a rear-naked choke.

With the win, St. Louis (11-4) notched his eighth win in a row.

Pergande Impresses in Hometown

Nashville’s own Alexei Pergande improved to 6-0 with a unanimous decision winning performance over Georgia’s Mike Bardsley (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

Bardsley (5-2) proved to be a game and rugged opponent, but was left bloodied by the lanky 24-year old. Both fighters entered the match with impressive grappling backgrounds, but Pergande proved to be a tricky outfighter. He routinely tagged the charging Bardsley and opened up a nasty cut over his temple that poured blood down his chest.

‘Raw Dog’ Shows Teeth in Tennessee

Fans flocked to the arena early to see Tennessee’s own Jason Danner hunt a third-straight win against savvy bantamweight veteran Nathan Gilmore. They were treated to a back-and-forth brawl that included several momentum swings and riveting moments. Danner’s pace and scrambling kept Gilmore flustered throughout the first frame but Gilmore nearly finished Danner in the second round with a devastating knee. Gilmore followed him to the mat and nearly capped off the upset with arm triangle, but the hometown hero survived. Gilmore gave everything he had in the second-round rally and couldn’t handle the pressure in the closing minutes.

Danner grinded his way to a well-earned unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) to improve to 3-0 as a pro. Gilmore fell to 4-6.