Ante Delija vs. Yorgan De Castro Headlines PFL 2 on April 7

2022 Professional Fighters League heavyweight champion Ante Delija will begin his attempt for a repeat when he faces Yorgan De Castro in the PFL 2 headliner on April 7.

The promotion announced the card for its second regular season event — which features heavyweights and women’s featherweights — on Monday. In the co-main event, 2022 women’s lightweight winner Larissa Pacheco will square off against ex-Bellator champ Julia Budd at 145 pounds. Two more heavyweight bouts round out the main draw: Bruno Cappelozza vs. Matheus Scheffel and Renan Ferreira vs. Rizvan Kuniev.

Seven bouts were announced for the preliminary portion of the card: Denis Goltsov vs. Michal Andryszak; Martina Jindrova vs. Amber Leibrock; Olena Kolesnyk vs. Aspen Ladd; Marcelo Nunes vs. TBA; Marina Mokhnatkina vs. Yoko Higashi; Amanda Leve vs. Karolina Sobek and Biaggio Ali Walsh vs. TBA.

PFL 2 takes place at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas. The main card airs on ESPN, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, while prelims stream on ESPN+ beginning at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.

A protege of Mirko Filipovic, Delija went 4-0 during his 2022 PFL campaign. He completed a run through the organization’s postseason by scoring first-round TKO victories against Ferreira and Scheffel to capture the heavyweight title and a $1 million payout.

A four-time UFC veteran, De Castro has won three consecutive bouts following a 1-3 stint within the Las Vegas-based promotion. Most recently, “The Mad Titan” bested Junior dos Santos at Eagle FC 47 when his opponent suffered a shoulder injury 35 seconds into the third round of their encounter.