The Professional Fighters League returns to the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Saturday with a packed 13-fight card featuring undefeated lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov (20-0-0) defending his title against 2025 PFL lightweight World Tournament winner Alfie Davis (20-5-1). The card also includes the crowning of a new welterweight champion, as Ramazan Kuramagomedov (13-0-0) and Shamil Musaev (20-0-1) square off for the vacant throne.
Coverage begins with prelims at 9 a.m. ET in the ESPN App for fans with an ESPN Unlimited plan. The main card is scheduled to start at noon.
Main card
Prelims
(c) = defending champion
How to watch the fights
Watch the fights in the ESPN App: Get an ESPN Unlimited plan here.
Fans can catch all the action in the PFL streaming hub.
There’s also FightCenter, which offers live updates for every PFL card.
Three storylines to watch
The first valid title fight of 2026
PFL lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov meets the promotion’s 2025 lightweight tournament champion Alfie Davis in the main event of PFL Dubai on Saturday, and it would not be unreasonable to characterize it as the first legitimate MMA title fight of 2026. Not the first legit PFL title fight, but the first in any major promotion.
Each of the two UFC events in January was headlined by a fight with a belt on the line. But one was an interim lightweight title bout that, while fulfilling its promise of fiery fisticuffs, did not include the true No. 1 contender. The other was a puzzling rematch of a fight nine months ago that had left no doubt about who was the featherweight king.
By contrast, the PFL is putting the undefeated Nurmagomedov (20-0, 1 NC) in with a challenger who earned his title shot. Davis (20-5-1) has won six of his past seven fights, most recently an upset of Nurmagomedov’s teammate Gadzhi Rabadanov in August’s season finale. Nurmagomedov, a former Bellator MMA champion, has a pedigree — and last name — that could elevate his status in the sport as well as the public profile of the company for whom he fights.
A big star is missing
Having said that, Saturday’s fight card could have been a bigger springboard if not for the absence of Dakota Ditcheva. The 15-0 Englishwoman, who won the 2024 PFL women’s flyweight season, appeared destined for stardom after posting nine straight finishes. But an unspecified injury forced her to withdraw from this weekend’s event. In a month in which the UFC has no high-profile fights slated, not having Ditcheva is an opportunity lost for the PFL.
But there’s still a Nurmagomedov fight at the top of the bill and a co-main matchup between two undefeated welterweights, former Bellator champion Ramazan Kuramagomedov (13-0) and 2024 PFL tournament winner Shamil Musaev (18-0-1). Who will seize the spotlight?
A new format could provide new opportunities and matchups
A change from the single-elimination tournament format the PFL used in 2025 to a more traditional matchmaking format might allow the PFL to showcase its top talent more regularly this year.
PFL Dubai is a great example of the future possibilities for upcoming fight cards, as the promotion’s first event of the year features more of its top fighters than fans might be used to seeing. Six fighters who have either won a PFL tournament or held a Bellator title will be in action — former Bellator and reigning PFL lightweight champ Nurmagomedov; 2025 lightweight tournament winner Alfie Davis; 2024 welterweight tournament winner Shamil Musaev; former Bellator welterweight champion Ramazan Kuramagomedov; 2023 featherweight tournament winner Jesus Pinedo; and 2022 light heavyweight tournament winner Rob Wilkinson. There are also a handful of undefeated fighters littered throughout the card.
Under the tournament format, matchups between the promotion’s top fighters were less frequent because a single loss could put a prominent fighter out of action for the remainder of the year. A shift back to traditional matchmaking means the promotion can book high-level matchups throughout the year without fear of seeing its premier talent cast aside too early, which is a win for the PFL and fight fans.
