The Professional Fighters League is headed back to Belgium with a lineup built around local talent, established names, and intriguing stylistic clashes.<\/p>\n
PFL officially announced the full card for PFL Brussels, which takes place Saturday, May 23, at the ING Arena in Brussels, Belgium. Headlining the event is unbeaten Belgian prospect Patrick Habirora, who gets the biggest test of his career when he meets former UFC and Bellator champion Benson Henderson in the main event.<\/p>\n
Habirora enters the bout with a spotless 8-0 record and a growing reputation as one of Belgium\u2019s top emerging stars. Nicknamed \u201cThe Belgian Bomber,\u201d the Namur native electrified the Brussels crowd last year with a first-round knockout victory and now returns home looking to deliver another statement performance. Standing across from him will be Henderson, a longtime MMA veteran whose r\u00e9sum\u00e9 includes wins over some of the sport\u2019s elite. At 30-12, \u201cSmooth\u201d remains one of the most recognizable names in the game and will attempt to halt the rise of another young contender.<\/p>\n
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The co-main event pairs surging French bantamweight Taylor Lapilus against England\u2019s Jake Hadley in what could be one of the night\u2019s most competitive contests.<\/p>\n
Lapilus rides a five-fight winning streak into Brussels and is coming off a knockout win over Kasum Kasumov. The Paris native has quietly reestablished himself as a dangerous force in the division and now looks to continue that run against Hadley. The Englishman, known as \u201cWhite Kong,\u201d made headlines last year with a rare Twister submission and has shown flashes of the dynamic skill set that once made him one of Europe\u2019s top prospects.<\/p>\n
Also added to the card is a welterweight clash featuring Belgium\u2019s Khamzat Abaev against Moldova\u2019s Luca Poclit.<\/p>\n
Abaev owns a 5-1 mark with every one of his wins coming by stoppage. After suffering a setback in his PFL debut last year, he returns with an opportunity to rebound in front of a home-country crowd. Poclit, who trains out of SBG Ireland, enters at 10-2 and previously built a 10-fight winning streak before dropping his most recent appearance.<\/p>\n
PFL Brussels continues the promotion\u2019s push into major European markets while giving regional stars a chance to shine on home soil. With a proven veteran in Henderson, a red-hot Lapilus, and multiple Belgian talents featured prominently, the event has the ingredients for an electric night in Brussels.<\/p>\n
The preliminary card will stream in the United States on the ESPN App beginning at 1 p.m. ET. The main card follows at 4 p.m. ET.<\/p>\n
FULL FIGHT CARD<\/p>\n
Patrick Habirora (8-0) vs. Benson Henderson (30-12)
\nTaylor Lapilus vs. Jake Hadley (12-5)
\nBoris Atangana (8-0) vs. Jared Gooden (23-11)
\nMarcirley Alves (15-4) vs. Naoki Inoue (20-5)
\nAsa\u00ebl Adjoudj (10-1) vs. Keisuke Sasu (14-4-1)
\nDonegi Abena (0-0) vs. Joe Schilling (4-6)
\nBaris Adiguzel (10-1) vs. Gustavo Oliveira (12-2)
\nAmin Ayoub (24-7-1) vs. Tim Wilde (18-7-1)
\nMovsar Ibragimov (7-1) vs. Youssouf Binate (6-1)
\nAdam Meskini (10-3) vs. Keweny Lopes (12-4-1)
\nRustam Serbiev (9-5) vs. Ashley Reece (9-3)<\/p>\n
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