Kayla Harrison Brutalizes Genah Fabian, Punches Ticket to PFL Women’s Lightweight Final

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison advanced to the 2021 Professional Fighters League women’s lightweight final and made it look easy.

The undefeated American Top Team star disposed of Genah Fabian with punches in the first round of their PFL 8 headliner on Thursday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. Harrison (11-0, 10-0 PFL) brought their semifinal to a close 4:01 into Round 1.

Fabian (4-2, 3-2 PFL) never stood a chance. Harrison closed the distance, trapped the City Kickboxing representative in the clinch along the fence and executed a takedown. She transitioned from side control to mount and threatened with an armbar before turning to her ground-and-pound. Harrison then battered the Kiwi with punches from above, floated to the back and continued the assault with both hands until referee Andrew Glenn had seen enough.

Harrison, 31, now shifts her attention to the tournament final and a date with a still-nascent Taylor Guardado on Oct. 27.

Thudding leg kicks, multiple takedowns and a steady diet of counter right hands carried Guardado to a split decision over Mariana Morais on the other side of the women’s lightweight bracket. All three judges struck 29-28 scorecards: John Rupert and Michael Tate for Guardado, Eliseo Rodriguez for Morais.

Guardado (3-1, 3-0 PFL) did just enough to get by during a 15-minute encounter in which neither woman seemed able or willing to seize command. Morais (17-12, 1-2 PFL) answered the Xtreme Couture rep’s efforts with a pair of beautiful hip-toss takedowns—one in the first round, another in the third—but failed to consolidate them with meaningful damage or control.

The 30-year-old Guardado has won three fights in a row.

Meanwhile, former Jungle Fight champion Bruno Henrique Cappelozza put away Jamelle Jones with punches in the second round of their 2021 PFL heavyweight semifinal. Jones (12-7, 1-1 PFL) succumbed to blows 93 seconds into Round 2, his three-fight winning streak at an end.

Cappelozza (13-5, 3-0 PFL) chipped away at the Dana White’s Contender Series alum’s base with repeated kicks to the inside of his lead leg. He picked his spots from the outside, steered clear of danger and waited for his investment to pay off. Jones became more and more stationary as time progressed, leaving him more and more vulnerable to the Brazilian’s other weapons. Cappelozza stunned and floored him with a jab early in the second round, trailed him to the canvas and drew the curtain with a volley of punches.

The win moves Cappelozza into the Oct. 27 heavyweight tournament final, where he faces a rematch with Ante Delija—a man he knocked out in 46 seconds a little more than three months ago.

The 31-year-old Delija leaned on timely takedowns and suffocating positional control, as he sprang an upset and walked away with a unanimous decision over Denis Goltsov on the other side of the heavyweight bracket. All three judges scored it 29-28 for Delija (19-4, 3-1 PFL).

Delija withstood being mounted midway through the first round, trapped the former Absolute Championship Berkut titleholder in the clinch and managed to set a pace for which he was better suited. Goltsov (27-7, 5-2 PFL) was dominant in the middle stanza, where he stung the Mirko Filipovic protege with jabs, sprawled out of an attempted takedown and drove his counterpart to a kneeling position along the base of the fence. Once there, he unleashed a series of right hands to the side of the Croatian’s head. However, the Sambo Piter export’s inability to finish proved costly. Delija rebounded in Round 3, struck for a takedown inside the first 20 seconds and kept the Russian pinned to the canvas for much of the period.

The loss snapped Goltsov’s two-fight winning streak.

In other action, Renan Ferreira (8-2, 2-0 PFL) knocked out Stuart Austin (15-7, 0-1 PFL) with a clean right cross 31 seconds into the first round of their heavyweight confrontation; Muhammed DeReese (9-4, 4-4 PFL) was awarded a unanimous verdict over Carl Seumanutafa (12-14, 0-4 PFL) in a three-round heavyweight scrap, prompting 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27 nods from the judges; Marina Mokhnatkina (6-2, 1-0 PFL) laid claim to a unanimous decision over Claudia Zamora (3-2, 0-1 PFL) in a three-round women’s lightweight tilt, earning 30-27 scores across the board; Amanda Leve (1-0, 1-0 PFL) submitted Miranda Barber (1-2, 0-1 PFL) with a rear-naked choke 4:18 into the first round of their women’s lightweight pairing; and Christian Lohsen (9-2, 1-0 PFL) took a unanimous decision from Jonas Flok (14-6, 0-1 PFL) in a three-round lightweight affair, drawing 29-28 marks from all three cageside judges.