Tournament Winners Advance in Finish-Heavy 2025 PFL MENA 1 Card

Reigning Professional Fighters League MENA lightweight champion Mohsen Mohammadseifi passed his first test on the road to defending his title Friday, but it was far from easy.

After three hellacious rounds, the “Golden Boy” had his hands raised over Egypt’s Ahmed El Sisy in the 2025 PFL MENA 1 main event from the Onyx Arena in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Mohammadseifi (8-2) entered the tournament riding the high of a seven-fight win streak and hoped to put fear into the rest of the field with a knockout. He sat down on every punch and cut El Sisy over his eye with a whopper of a right hand, but El Sisy didn’t budge. El Sisy was buckled and dropped throughout the fight, but was never out of the match, and the slugfest was glorious. It was a clear win for Mohammadseifi, but El Sisy showed grit and raised his stock. With the win, Mohammadseifi moved on to the lightweight semifinals, where he’ll face Mohammad Fahmi.

It might’ve taken three rounds, but that still couldn’t stop Salah Eddine Hamli from finding a highlight-reel finish over Abbas Khan in lightweight action. The undefeated Hamil (9-0) had Khan in trouble several times with his rear-naked choke, but the seasoned Pakistani puncher showed resilience under pressure and fought off Hamil’s attempts. Despite Khan’s defense, Hamli didn’t grow frustrated and just kept at Khan’s next round after round before finally sinking in an RNC in the fight's closing minutes.

Related » 2025 PFL MENA 1 Round-by-Round Scoring

In a battle of unbeaten featherweights, Taha Bendaoud proved to be an apex predator. Bendaoud systematically broke down Drissi Boualem before submitting him in the first round with a triangle choke. Bendaoud (5-0) will face Assem Ghanem (7-0) in the semifinals.

Malik Basahel makes a statement in his Pro Debut! #PFLMENA pic.twitter.com/JvdV4VUJbY

— PFL (@PFLMMA) May 9, 2025

After 24 amateur fights, there was no question whether Saudi Arabia’s Malik Basahel was prepared for his professional debut. The flyweight prospect notched his first win and pro stoppage with a second-round TKO win over Mountassir Boutouta (1-1). Basahel greatly used his elbows and distance management before following Boutouta to the mat and finishing him with ground-and-pound.

Undefeated Egyptian prospect Assem Ghanem dominated Baghdad’s Hussein Salem for the entirety of their featherweight tournament bout. Ghanem smashed Salem along the cage in Round 1 while Salem was repeatedly warned for putting his toes in the fence. Salem eventually was deducted a point, and it only got worse from there. Ghanem (7-0) was better than Salem (13-6) in every facet and pressed to the end for the finish, but Salem's toughness allowed him to survive. Still, the unanimous decision win for Ghanem was one of the most impressive performances on the card.

Islam Reda was the first featherweight to advance in the tournament after notching a third-round TKO stoppage over Algeria’s Akram Nasri. Reda (14-1) entered the tournament on a six-fight win streak and is one of the most experienced fighters in the field. He showcased his skills and stellar gas tank as he pressured Nasri on the ground and reversed multiple submission attempts. Nasri was gassed by the final stanza and looked to hold on till the final bell, but Reda sensed his hesitation and finished the fight with ground-and-pound from full mount.

Watch your neck!

Mohammad Fahmi gets the upset and hits the darce in the first round to advance to the 2025 @PFLMENA Semi-Finals! #PFLMENA pic.twitter.com/Vfn4fvqGP9

— PFL (@PFLMMA) May 9, 2025

Mohammad Fahmi announced his arrival to the lightweight field with a dominant first-round stoppage over seasoned vet Georges Eid. Eid was last season’s lightweight runner-up and had Fahmi in trouble with his combinations. Iranian undefeated prospect Fahmi (5-0) wasn’t discouraged, however, and attacked Eid’s single leg with persistence. After securing the takedown, Fahmi fended off a triangle attempt from Eid before sitting into his fight-ending Brabo choke. Eid was entirely out of position to fight off the submission, and it was only a matter of time before he was forced to tap.

Ahmad Makki closed out his career in ideal fashion with a third-round submission of Hasham Elnamer in lightweight action. Elnamer jumped out in the first round by pumping his jab, but the Saudi closed the gap in the second period with a trip and some dominant work in side control. With the fight up for grabs, Makki closed the show in the third round after he denied a takedown and pulled Elnamer into half guard. As Elnamer looked to escape, Makki quickly snatched a heel hook to force the tap and give Elnamer his first loss (3-1).

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يبث مباشرة على منصة "STARZPLAY".

بطولة "PFL MENA" | الجمعة، 9 مايو | جدة، المملكة العربية السعودية | مباشر على منصة "STARZPLAY"@PFLMMA #نصنع_التاريخ #السعودية pic.twitter.com/b72w2oinRp

— PFL MENA (@PFLMENA) May 9, 2025

Souhil Tairi came into the PFL MENA lightweight tournament off the heels of a two-fight skid but violently punched his ticket to the next round with a second-round TKO over Abdullah Saleem. Tairi (8-6) had to up his pressure after a slow first round, and a point deduction put him behind on the scorecards. In Round 2, he walked down the formerly undefeated Saleem (5-1) and battered him with knees and overhand rights before referee Sam Amidi stepped in to stop the fight.

In women’s featherweight action, Eman Almudhaf (5-0), an undefeated prospect from Kuwait, narrowly defeated Brazil’s Shamara Braga (5-4) by split decision. Almudhaf rallied to pull out the scrappy win after she was nearly stopped by a cluster of Braga’s knees in the opening frame. Almudhaf showed slick in-and-out boxing and tagged Braga repeatedly with her jab and cross. Braga continued to maul Almudhaf in the clinch, but Almudhaf powered through the pain to score a critical takedown in the third round that gave her an edge on the scorecards.

In the opening bout, Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz Bin Moammar faced Algerian combatant Fares Hamdani in a 166-pound amateur catchweight bout. Moammar started the fight strong by attacking Hamdani’s lead leg with low kicks before pressing him against the fence. Hamadani struggled to press Moammar back but succeeded in the second round on the ground. Hamdani nearly finished Moammar with a triangle attempt, but the squeeze wasn’t tight enough. With the fight tied after two rounds, Moammar separated himself with a slam in the final minute and won a close, but unanimous decision. Scores were not revealed.