PFL 2025: Middleweight, Light Heavyweight, and Heavyweight Finals with Edwards, Romanov, and Carlos Jr.

The PFL culminates its 2025 season with a stellar card on Thursday in Hollywood, Florida. The heavyweight and light heavyweight finals will be some of the featured fights, where the tournament champions will be crowned (9 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+; preliminaries at 6 p.m. on ESPN+). The main event, which will take place at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, will pit two-time Bellator MMA middleweight title challenger Fabian Edwards against Dalton Rosta. In the co-main event, 2024 PFL heavyweight finalist Oleg Popov will face Alexander Romanov for the 2025 title. The main card will kick off with 2021 PFL light heavyweight champion Antonio Carlos Jr. facing Sullivan Cauley. The fight night will add eight new champions, following the welterweight and featherweight coronations on August 1, and in lightweight, bantamweight and women’s flyweight on August 15.

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PFL 2025 Finals: What You Need to Know Complete Thursday Schedule

PFL 2025 Finals: What You Need to Know

Middleweight: Fabian Edwards vs. Dalton Rosta

The 2025 PFL Middleweight Championship represents Fabian Edwards’ third title opportunity in six fights.Edwards’s trajectory: TKO victory in the second round over Impa Kasanganay on April 18; unanimous decision victory over Josh Silveira in the semi-final on June 27.Rosta’s Track Record: Submission victory in the second round over Sadibou Sy on April 18; split decision victory over Aaron Jeffery in the semi-final on June 27.

A key fact: 0. That’s the number of rivals Rosta hasn’t managed to beat. Although he has a loss on his record, by decision against Jeffery in 2023, Rosta got a crucial rematch over Jeffery this summer, securing his place in this championship fight.

“He lost that fight [against Jeffery]. I don’t care what the judges say. He lost that fight. If it had been five rounds, Jeffery would have finished him.” – Edwards, after the Rosta semi-final.
Fabian Edwards

“I beat him worse than you. … I outstruck him worse than you. The only thing you did was land two damn punches when you fought him, bro. That’s it. You got held against the cage the whole time. You got nothing for me.” – Rosta, comparing his semifinal to Edwards’ unanimous decision win over Jeffery in 2024.
Dalton Rosta

Factor X: Familiarity with championships. This will be Edwards’ fifth fight since 2023 with a championship or the opportunity to fight for one at stake. Previously, he competed twice for the Bellator middleweight title, managing to reach that position through qualifiers. That experience is valuable, although not insurmountable, but also not insignificant. Rosta is a rookie at this level.

What to expect: Edwards has suffered two defeats in his last eight fights, both in title fights against Johnny Eblen, who is Rosta’s training partner at American Top Team in Florida. While Rosta and Eblen are not identical, given the information Rosta has acquired in the gym, he is likely to understand which elements of Eblen’s game caused Edwards problems.

Heavyweight: Alexander Romanov vs. Oleg Popov

Romanov’s trajectory: Submission victory in the first round over Timothy Johnson on May 1; advanced by judges’ decision after his June 27 semifinal against Valentin Moldovsky was declared a no-contest due to an illegal groin strike that prevented Romanov from continuing.Popov’s trajectory: Split decision victory over Karl Williams on May 1st; unanimous decision victory over Rodrigo Nascimento in the semi-final on June 27th.A key fact: 28. That is the combined number of finishes by Romanov and Popov in their 40 victories. Romanov has 16 (10 submissions, 6 knockouts), Popov 12 (3 submissions, 9 knockouts). However, Popov’s last four victories have been decided by decision, as have two of Romanov’s last three victories.

“As soon as I take him to the ground, he will feel my pressure. One of the hardest parts of my game is my grappling and my wrestling.” – Romanov, on his 20-pound weight advantage in this fight.
Alexander Romanov

“I want to fight him. But if he suggests we fight, I will fight him.” – Popov
Oleg Popov

Factor X: Experience. Popov competed in last season’s PFL final, losing to Denis Goltsov by submission in the first round, ending a 16-fight winning streak. Obviously, that wasn’t the result he wanted, but the point is that Popov has been here before. Romanov only has two fights in the PFL.What to expect: When one fighter faces another fighter, two things happen: they either grapple (duh) or they nullify each other in that discipline and engage in a striking match. And when grappling specialists exchange blows, it often turns into a messy brawl. If we add to this that these two men are acquaintances who have spent time together outside the cage, who knows what will happen? One thing is for sure: if Popov’s mentor, MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko, is in his corner, Popov will stay focused and bring explosiveness. When asked what it’s like to have the great Fedor by his side, Popov said: “The greatest responsibility.”

Light Heavyweight: Sullivan Cauley vs. Antonio Carlos Jr.

Cauley’s trajectory: TKO victory in the first round over Alex Polizza on May 1; unanimous decision victory over Phil Davis in the semi-final on June 27.Carlos Jr.’s Career: Split decision victory over Karl Moore on May 1st; unanimous decision victory over Simeon Powell in the semi-final on June 27th.A key fact: 12. That is the number of submissions for Carlos among his 18 victories. He is a two-time jiu-jitsu world champion.

“Some things are simply learned through experience. I made many mistakes in my career, I did many things wrong in my fights. Some of them cost me the victory. That’s why I think experience is so important, and [Cauley] doesn’t have much experience. I’m not going to make the mistakes I made in the past, and I’m going to use that to my advantage.” – Carlos, contrasting his 26-fight MMA career with Cauley’s nine fights.
Antonio Carlos Jr.

“He has more experience than me, but I proved in my last fight that I can beat guys with a lot of experience”. – Cauley
Sullivan Cauley

Factor X: Discipline to fight where you are best. Cauley describes himself as “one of the few guys in MMA who could box at a professional level.” With his limited cage experience, can he maintain composure to not use his wrestling offensively, but to keep the fight standing, where it would be logical for him to have the advantage? Or will arrogance take over and take him to the mat, Carlos’ world?What to expect: Cauley was a Division I wrestler at Arizona State, so he is comfortable fighting on the mat. However, in MMA, all but two of his victories have been by first-round knockout, so it is logical that he would prefer to stand and trade blows with Carlos, an elite grappler with no knockout victories in his career.