Moore exits PFL tournament after Carlos Junior defeat
Ireland's Karl Moore is out of the PFL's light-heavyweight world tournament after a split decision defeat by Antonio Carlos Junior at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.Moore was out-grappled by Brazil's former champion Carlos Junior and despite a strong final round, was unable to convince the judges he had done enough to claim victory.Two of the judges went 29-28 in favour of Carlos Junior with the third giving it to Moore by the same score.Moore was fighting for the first time since defeat by American Corey Anderson for the Bellator light-heavyweight title last year.Moore, who lives in Belfast, said he had moved into his gym in Dublin to prepare for the fight to save money on travelling between the two cities.He was facing a former PFL champion in Carlos Junior and a slow start to the fight ended up proving costly.Moore was taken down twice by Carlos Junior in the first round, who landed a number of ground shots before continuing to dominate the grappling in the second round.Moore fought back in the third, with a clean right hand and takedown towards the end of the contest, but couldn't secure the finish he needed.
Briton Powell reaches semi-finals
Carlos Junior will face Britain's Simeon Powell in the semi-finals after the 26-year-old put in an impressive performance to knock out Sweden's Karl Albrektsson in the second round.After a quiet first round where Albrektsson controlled the majority of the action against the cage, Powell unleashed in the second.The 26-year-old broke free from Albrektsson's grappling attempt and landed three elbows to knock down the Swede before the referee stopped the contest.Carlos Junior and Powell will fight on 27 June at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois.The knockout format of the PFL tournament is unlike previous years where the first round contributed to a division league table.The eventual champions will receive £395,000 ($500,000) in prize money.Other Britons in the semi-finals include Fabian Edwards, who stopped American Impa Kasanganay in the second round of their middleweight contest last month.Edwards will face American Josh Silveira next, also on 27 June.On the same card, fellow Briton Alfie Davis faces American Brent Primus in the lightweight semi-finals after he knocked out American Clay Collard in April.In the bantamweight semi-finals, Briton Jake Hadley faces Brazil's Marcirley Alves on 20 June in Kansas.Hadley reached the last four by submitting Brazil's Matheus Mattos in the third round of their contest in April.
PFL 2025 tournament semi-finals
20 June - Intrust Bank Arena, Wichita, KansasJake Hadley (England) v Marcirley Alves - bantamweight27 June - Wintrust Arena, Chicago, IllinoisFabian Edwards (England) v Josh Silveira - middleweightBrent Primus v Alfie Davis (England) - lightweightAntonio Carlos Junior v Simeon Powell - light-heavyweight
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Belfast Telegraph
9 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
I could have closed gap to Celtic, insists former Rangers boss Philippe Clement
Clement felt he was working on a long-term project after the board told him to cut the wage bill last summer and develop younger players to fuel future spending. But his reign ended in February after back-to-back home defeats by Queen's Park and St Mirren left them out of the Scottish Cup and 13 points adrift of Celtic in the Premiership. Russell Martin has now been installed as his permanent successor after an interim stint from Barry Ferguson and the financial backdrop has changed following a takeover by an American consortium. 'It's a pity that the story stopped, that the board didn't have the patience or maybe listened too much to some fans,' Clement told BBC Scotland. 'There are other clubs where there is a difficult moment and everybody sticks together because everybody knows the story, how the work is done inside the building, and they continue and they are successful afterwards. 'In three or four windows, we could have closed the gap with a good development of players, but the decision is made and you need to accept it.' Clement pointed out that this time last year he was told the club's spending was not sustainable 'There was not fresh investment in the club, but the money available for the transfers would be the sale of players, so the amount you can get out of that,' he added. 'That was not much at the end, because the squad was with a lot of older players. So people didn't want to pay any more for them. Six players were out of contract, so they left for free.' The Belgian added that the wage bill was cut by 35 per cent in order to rebuild the squad. 'And the idea was, and that was clearly said at the board, that the club needed three, four transfer windows to get at the level of Celtic, because you have to gain money again by bringing young players in, developing them, making them better, selling them and getting money to make the squad better and better in the next two, three years,' he added. Clement believes progress has been made in that sense with the development of the likes of Nico Raskin, Jefte, Hamza Igamane and Clinton Nsiala. 'If they say there's no new investment, I now understand why,' he said. 'Because at the end, some people were already thinking about selling the club and selling their stocks.' Clement claimed Rangers under-achieved domestically but over-achieved in the Europa League and felt some players were not ready for the demands of competing on both fronts. 'I think it's normal in the financial situation the club was, but it's not good enough,' he said. 'But you need patience then to build it or you need to spend money. It's one of the two. Without one of the two, it's an impossible job.' Clement hopes his successor gets that backing. 'I hope that there comes stability, to work in a good way with the players, with the staff, with everybody in the club, to have a consistent story,' he said. 'I think that's a big part that the club has been lacking for years and I hope that the new owners can bring that for the club and for the manager also, for the players.'
Scottish Sun
12 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Jake Paul calls on UFC to make stunning ‘winner-takes-all' MMA fight between Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou
JAKE PAUL has challenged the UFC to accept a "winner-takes-all" fight between Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou. Jones is currently the UFC heavyweight champion but appears uninterested in facing No1 contender Tom Aspinall. 3 Francis Ngannou with Jake Paul Credit: X 3 Jon Jones called to fight Ngannou Credit: Getty Ngannou walked out on the UFC in 2022 to sign with rivals the Professional Fighters League and pursue boxing. But Jones, 36, posted: "I'm hearing Francis Ngannou is still interested… now we're talking. That's a real super fight. "A clash of champions, not just hype. He held the UFC belt, I've defended mine for over a decade. Two kings from different roads. "Not just one legend facing a mouth that's hot right now, but two real legacies colliding. READ MORE IN MMA JON GONE? Jon Jones trolls Dana White and UFC fans as he finally reveals fight plans "That's the kind of fight that actually adds something special to my story. At least from my point of view." Ngannou, 38, responded: "You take care of the UFC, I'll take care of the PFL, and we'll finally find out who's the KING OF THE HEAVYWEIGHT." PFL founder Donn Davis said: "PROPOSAL … WINNER TAKE ALL MMA best heavyweight of all time. @francis_ngannou vs @JonnyBones "Francis Wins … @PFLMMA and Francis split 100% of the event profits Jon Wins … @UFC and Jon split 100% of the event profits." CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul - signed to the PFL - chimed in: "The perfect final dance for the two greatest MMA heavyweights of all time. "Jon Jones wants it. Francis Ngannou wants it. Big fight for the sport. Big fight for the fans and Big business. Who doesn't want it?" Jake Paul reveals 'hefty' six-man hit-list of opponents for next fight including Anthony Joshua and world champ Ngannou left the UFC as champion to box Tyson Fury, 36, in 2023 even scoring a knockdown before losing a controversial split-decision. He was then knocked out by Anthony Joshua, 35, in 2024 and returned to MMA the same year to beat PFL's Renan Ferreira, 35. Jones meanwhile is yet to fight since beating UFC legend Stipe Miocic, 42, last November. But UFC boss Dana White talked down the chance of working with Ngannou again despite the allure of a super-fight with Jones. White said: 'It's Aspinall's fight. I mean, we've been talking to this kid about it forever and it's his fight. 'Listen, you can't make people fight, if Jon doesn't want to fight, you can't make him fight. "We can try to make him fight, we can throw things at him that inspire him to want to fight, but we'll figure it out. "I don't have Ngannou under contract and Aspinall is the guy!'
The Sun
12 hours ago
- The Sun
Jake Paul calls on UFC to make stunning ‘winner-takes-all' MMA fight between Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou
JAKE PAUL has challenged the UFC to accept a "winner-takes-all" fight between Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou. Jones is currently the UFC heavyweight champion but appears uninterested in facing No1 contender Tom Aspinall. 3 Ngannou walked out on the UFC in 2022 to sign with rivals the Professional Fighters League and pursue boxing. But Jones, 36, posted: "I'm hearing Francis Ngannou is still interested… now we're talking. That's a real super fight. "A clash of champions, not just hype. He held the UFC belt, I've defended mine for over a decade. Two kings from different roads. "Not just one legend facing a mouth that's hot right now, but two real legacies colliding. "That's the kind of fight that actually adds something special to my story. At least from my point of view." Ngannou, 38, responded: "You take care of the UFC, I'll take care of the PFL, and we'll finally find out who's the KING OF THE HEAVYWEIGHT." PFL founder Donn Davis said: "PROPOSAL … WINNER TAKE ALL MMA best heavyweight of all time. @francis_ngannou vs @JonnyBones "Francis Wins … @PFLMMA and Francis split 100% of the event profits Jon Wins … @UFC and Jon split 100% of the event profits." YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul - signed to the PFL - chimed in: "The perfect final dance for the two greatest MMA heavyweights of all time. "Jon Jones wants it. Francis Ngannou wants it. Big fight for the sport. Big fight for the fans and Big business. Who doesn't want it?" Jake Paul reveals 'hefty' six-man hit-list of opponents for next fight including Anthony Joshua and world champ Ngannou left the UFC as champion to box Tyson Fury, 36, in 2023 even scoring a knockdown before losing a controversial split-decision. He was then knocked out by Anthony Joshua, 35, in 2024 and returned to MMA the same year to beat PFL's Renan Ferreira, 35. Jones meanwhile is yet to fight since beating UFC legend Stipe Miocic, 42, last November. But UFC boss Dana White talked down the chance of working with Ngannou again despite the allure of a super-fight with Jones. White said: 'It's Aspinall's fight. I mean, we've been talking to this kid about it forever and it's his fight. 'Listen, you can't make people fight, if Jon doesn't want to fight, you can't make him fight. "We can try to make him fight, we can throw things at him that inspire him to want to fight, but we'll figure it out. "I don't have Ngannou under contract and Aspinall is the guy!' 3
