The PFL ends its 2025 season in a big way on Thursday in Hollywood, Florida, with heavyweight and light heavyweight among the final three weight classes to crown tournament champions (9 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+; prelims at 6 p.m. on ESPN+).
The main event at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino pits two-time Bellator MMA middleweight title challenger Fabian Edwards against Dalton Rosta. In the co-main event, 2024 PFL heavyweight finalist Oleg Popov meets Alexander Romanov for the 2025 title. The main card opens with 2021 PFL light heavyweight champion Antonio Carlos Jr. facing Sullivan Cauley. The fight card will bring the list of new champions to eight, as the PFL crowned champions at welterweight and featherweight on Aug. 1 and lightweight, bantamweight and women’s flyweight on Aug. 15.
Here are some things to know about Thursday’s three 2025 PFL finals.
Middleweight: Fabian Edwards (15-4) vs. Dalton Rosta (11-1)
How Edwards got here: Defeated Impa Kasanganay by second-round TKO on April 18; defeated Josh Silveira by unanimous decision in a June 27 semifinal.
How Rosta got here: Defeated Sadibou Sy by second-round submission on April 18; defeated Aaron Jeffery by split decision in a June 27 semifinal.
Number to know: 0.
That’s how many opponents Rosta has not defeated. Yes, he has one loss on his record, by decision against Jeffery in 2023. But Rosta exacted consequential revenge on Jeffery earlier this summer by squeezing past him for a spot in this championship fight.
Fighting words: “He lost that fight [against Jeffery]. I don’t care what the judges say. He lost that fight. If it were a five-rounder, he would have been finished by Jeffery.” — Edwards, after Rosta’s semifinal
“I beat him worse than you beat him. … I outstruck him worse than you did. All you did was land two f—ing uppercuts when you fought him, bro. That’s it. You got held against the cage the entire time. You’ve got nothing for me.” — Rosta, comparing his semifinal to Edwards’ 2024 unanimous decision win over Jeffery
X factor: Championship familiarity.
This will be Edwards’ fifth fight since 2023 with either a championship or an opportunity to fight for one next at stake. He twice challenged for the Bellator 185-pound title, both times getting to that position via title eliminators. That experience is valuable — not insurmountable, but not insignificant, either. Rosta is a newbie at this level.
What to watch for: Edwards has two losses in his past eight fights, both in title bouts with Johnny Eblen, who happens to be Rosta’s training partner at American Top Team in Florida. Rosta and Eblen are not carbon copies of each other, but given all that Rosta has picked up in the gym, he likely understands what elements of Eblen’s game gave Edwards so much trouble.
Heavyweight: Alexander Romanov (19-3, 1 NC) vs. Oleg Popov (21-2)
How Romanov got here: Defeated Timothy Johnson by first-round submission on May 1; advanced by judges’ decision after his June 27 semifinal against Valentin Moldovsky was ruled a no contest because an illegal groin strike rendered Romanov unable to continue.
How Popov got here: Defeated Karl Williams by split decision on May 1; defeated Rodrigo Nascimento by unanimous decision in a June 27 semifinal.
Number to know: 28.
That is the number of finishes by Romanov and Popov, combined, in their 40 wins. Romanov has 16 (10 submissions, 6 knockouts), Popov 12 (3 subs, 9 KOs). However, Popov’s past four victories have gone the distance, as have two of Romanov’s past three wins.
Fighting words: “As soon as I take him down, he will feel my pressure. One of the toughest sides of my game is my grappling and my wrestling.” — Romanov, on his 20-pound weight advantage in this fight
“I want to brawl him. But if he suggests we wrestle, I’m going to wrestle with him.” — Popov
X factor: Experience
Popov fought in last season’s PFL final, losing to Denis Goltsov by first-round submission to end a 16-fight winning streak. That wasn’t the result he wanted, obviously, but the point is that Popov has been here before. Romanov is just two fights into his PFL run.
What to watch for: When wrestler fights wrestler, one of two things happens: Either they wrestle (duh) or they cancel each other out in that discipline and engage in a striking match. And when wrestling specialists exchange leather, it often turns into a sloppy slobberknocker. Add into the stew that these two men are acquaintances who’ve spent time around each other outside the cage, and who knows what happens? One thing is for sure: If Popov’s mentor, MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko, is in his corner, Popov will stay on task and bring explosiveness. Asked what it’s like to have the great Fedor by his side, Popov said, “Biggest responsibility.”
Light heavyweight: Sullivan Cauley (8-1) vs. Antonio Carlos Jr. (18-6, 2 NCs)
How Cauley got here: Defeated Alex Polizza by first-round TKO on May 1; defeated Phil Davis by unanimous decision in a June 27 semifinal.
How Carlos got here: Defeated Karl Moore by split decision Alex Polizza on May 1; defeated Simeon Powell by unanimous decision in a June 27 semifinal.
Number to know: 12.
That’s the number of submissions for Carlos among his 18 victories. He’s a two-time jiu-jitsu world champion.
Fighting words: “Some things you just learn by experience. I had a lot of mistakes in my career, I did a lot of wrong stuff in my fights. Some of them cost me victory. That’s why I think experience is so important, and [Cauley] doesn’t have a lot of experience. I’m not going to do the mistakes that I did in the past, and I’m going to use that in my favor.” — Carlos, contrasting his 26-fight MMA career to Cauley’s nine fights
“He’s got more experience than me, but I proved in my last fight that I can beat guys with a lot of experience.” — Cauley
X factor: Discipline to fight where you’re best
Cauley describes himself as “one of the few guys in MMA that could box at the professional level.” With his limited experience in the cage, can he maintain the composure to not use his wrestling offensively but to keep the fight standing, where it would stand to reason he has the advantage? Or will hubris take over and lead him to the canvas — Carlos’ world?
What to watch for: Cauley is a former Division-I wrestler at Arizona State, so he is comfortable fighting on the canvas. In MMA, though, all but two of his wins have been by first-round knockout, so it stands to reason that he would prefer to stand and throw hands with Carlos, an elite grappler with zero career knockout wins.
Thursday’s full fight card
ESPN/ESPN+, 9 p.m. ET
Middleweight final: Fabian Edwards vs. Dalton Rosta
Heavyweight final: Alexandr Romanov vs. Oleg Popov
Light heavyweight final: Sullivan Cauley vs. Antonio Carlos Jr.
ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET
Featherweight: Alexei Pergande vs. Ethan Goss
Bantamweight: Bryce Meredith vs. Lazaro Dayron
Middleweight: Impa Kasanganay vs. Andrew Sanchez
Light heavyweight: Guilherme Viana vs. Rasul Magomedov
Heavyweight: Sergei Bilostenniy vs. Karl Williams
Welterweight: J.P. Saint Louis vs. Tyler Ray
