Usman Nurmagomedov and Alfie Davis will star in the start of the 2026 PFL season
The 2026 PFL season will kick off with an exciting lightweight title fight between Usman Nurmagomedov and Alfie Davis, as announced by the executives on Thursday.
Nurmagomedov, with an impressive 20-0 record, will seek to defend his PFL title against Davis (20-5-1) on February 7 at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai.
Nurmagomedov, cousin of the legendary Khabib Nurmagomedov, is a former Bellator MMA champion. This will be his third appearance under the PFL banner. He became the promotion’s official lightweight champion in October, winning the vacant belt in a fight against Paul Hughes.
PFL is renewing its identity in 2026, abandoning the season formats and single-elimination tournaments in favor of more traditional MMA matchups. Nurmagomedov is one of the company’s figures and is considered one of the best fighters in the world competing outside of the UFC. Currently, he holds the fifth position in the lightweight ranking in the MMA divisional rankings.
Davis, from England, won the PFL lightweight tournament this year, with victories over Clay Collard, Brent Primus, and Gadzhi Rabadanov. Rabadanov, whom Davis defeated in the 2025 lightweight final by unanimous decision, is a close friend and teammate of Nurmagomedov’s team from Dagestan.
