Bubba Jenkins attempted to continue his “Correction Tour” in the PFL Playoffs and was one step closer to returning to the finals. Unfortunately, he ran into a brick wall in Jesus Pinedo, who dominated Jenkins to advance to the PFL Finals.
Inside the Boeing Center at Tech Port in Texas, Pinedo beat Jenkins via TKO, adding to his hit list that included the man that beat Jenkins last year in Brendan Loughnane. He now faces Gabriel Braga in a rematch in the PFL Finals.
Braga beat Pinedo to open the 2023 season.
With a four-inch reach advantage, Pinedo punished a tired Jenkins from the opening bell. While Jenkins attempted to tire him out using the cage, Pinedo crushed Jenkins with shots each time he moved forward. The bout almost ended before the second round. Pinedo landed a flurry of lefts, but Jenkins got saved by the bell.
MORE: Full list of PFL winners by year
The second round saw a tentative Jenkins attempt to find momentum, but it was all for naught. Pinedo landed lefts and knees by the cage, which forced Jenkins to bleed close to the eye. While Jenkins landed on top of Pinedo at some point, the referee didn’t see any action, and forced the fight to the feet. That was all Pinedo needed to land flurries to an injured Jenkins. Seeing enough, the ref pulled Pinedo away, awarding him the dominant win.
PERU!!! JESUS PINEDO WINS!#PFLPlayoffs LIVE NOW
🇺🇸 ESPN
🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHI pic.twitter.com/U5MPwKcurI— PFL (@PFLMMA) August 5, 2023
Pinedo landed 130 of 169 shots compared to 42 of 81 for Jenkins. 88 of those 130 shots were arm strikes, while 39 were ground strikes.
Speaking of Braga, he faced Chris Wade, who replaced Movlid Khaybulaev. Braga dominated the first two rounds, landing kicks and hooks to the face of Wade. Wade landed a few knee strikes but could not stop the onslaught of Braga. The fight ended as a split decision win for Braga, with one judge giving a questionable 30-27 score in favor of Wade.
Braga was one of three competitors to advance that appeared in the PFL Challenger Series, which developed fighters straight into the PFL’s roster.
OPPORTUNITY … We all want one … We like when others seize theirs.
Tonight that happened as 3 of 4 @PFLMMA Playoffs won by PFL Challenger Series Fighters.
They started this year fighting for $5,000 and now are in PFL $1 million Championship.
Real World Rocky Stories.
— Donn Davis (@DonnDavisPFL) August 5, 2023
In light heavyweight action, Impa Kasanganay landed several combination shots against Marthin Hamlet, knocking “The Dark Horse” out in the first round. Josh Silveira, son of MMA coach Conan Silveira, landed a big knee to the face of Ty Flores in round one to take out the big man.
MORE: PFL Playoffs 2023 Bracket: Who advanced to the PFL Finals?
Kasanganay and Silveira face off in the PFL Finals.
The Sporting News provided full results from the PFL 7 fight card. Check it out!
2023 PFL 7 full card results
Main card
- Jesus Pinedo def. Bubba Jenkins via TKO (4:40 into round two) in a Featherweight Semi-Final bout
- Josh Silveira def. Ty Flores via TKO (4:46 into round one) in a Light Heavyweight Semi-Final bout
JOSH SILVEIRA IS GOING TO THE SHIP! #PFLWORLDCHAMPIONSHIP#PFLPlayoffs LIVE NOW
🇺🇸 ESPN
🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHI pic.twitter.com/zbdTqLj0xk— PFL (@PFLMMA) August 5, 2023
- Gabriel Braga def. Chris Wade via split decision (27-30, 30-27, 29-28) in a Featherweight Semi-Final bout
- Impa Kasanganay def. Marthin Hamlet via KO (2:24 into round one) in a Light Heavyweight Semi-Final bout
Impa Kasanganay drops 💣💣💣 #PFLPlayoffs LIVE NOW
🇺🇸 ESPN
🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHI pic.twitter.com/AEtFAdMgzn— PFL (@PFLMMA) August 5, 2023
- Elvin Espinoza def. Keoni Diggs via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Prelims
- Thad Jean def. Ali Omar via TKO (1:54 into round one)
- Lisa Mauldin def. Desiree Yanez via rear-naked choke (3:05 into round one)
- Anthony Ivy def. Carson Hardman via rear-naked choke (2:34 into round one)
- Chelsea Hackett def. Ky Bennett via rear-naked choke (4:42 into round two)
- Billy Elekana def. Chuck Campbell via split decision (28–29, 29–28, 29–28)
