The first-ever PFL Africa semi-finals are set, and the full fight card has now been locked in for this Rwanda-based event. This inaugural PFL Africa Tournament Semifinals will see the heavyweight, welterweight, featherweight, and bantamweight combatants vie for further tournament advancement. These bouts will all transpire on October 18 in Kigali.
Rwanda’s own James Opio will throw down in an exciting featherweight fight with Uganda’s own, Isaac Omeda. This comes after announcing the first four contests, which obviously included the main and co-main event bouts. The PFL is now confirming the entire PFL Africa Semifinals: Rwanda event, which now features seven high-octane fights. This massive card is being described as the biggest MMA showcase that has ever been put on in East Africa.
Following two PFL Africa events in Cape Town and Johannesburg, the promotion now journeys to Kigali. The victors will then set their sights on Benin, where the inaugural PFL Africa champions will be established in December.
PFL Africa Semifinals: Rwanda will feature 11 fights in total. That breaks down to eight semi-final bouts, two alternate bouts, as well as a singular showcase bout. Kicking off the semifinals, Nigeria’s Wasi Adeshina collides with Liberia’s Dwight Joseph in a featherweight fight. Both combatants locked in their semifinal slots during their respective Johannesburg fights last month. Adeshina defeated Jean Jacques Lubaya, while Joseph stopped Wilker Nsamo.
PFL Africa and the remainder of the Kigali card
In the Welterweight ranks, Guinea-Bissau’s Yabna N’tchala aims to keep dominating and keep advancing. Standing in the way of that is Emilios Dassi from Cameroon. Dassi is a product of the Francis Ngannou Foundation, and his brick-fisted nature tips his cap to the titular figure of that very organization.
In a bantamweight bout, unbeaten Boule Godogo of the DRC enters freshly off of a massive upset win. That took place against Shannon van Tonder tests skills against Algeria’s Karim Henniene. Someone’s 0 must go in that outing, which further adds to the tension for both. The heavyweight ranks will see Ivory Coast’s Abraham Bably squaring up with Nigeria’s Joffie Houlton.
That will be the first heavyweight semi-final with Cameroon’s Maxwell Djantou Nana meeting unbeaten South African Justin Clarke on the other end of the bracket.
Rwandan James Opio looks to keep showing he is an exciting finisher, as he has one TKO and one submission in his young career. He looks to apply the first blemish to the pro MMA ledger of an unbeaten mixed martial artist in Uganda’s Isaac Omeda. This is a featherweight contracted showcase contest.
For the penultimate fight of the night, South African fighter Nkosi Ndebele battles with Zimbabwean standout Simbarashe Hokonya. This PFL fight is intriguing because Hokonya trains with Nicholas Hwende, who has previously bested Ndebele.
Topping the marquee will be Nigeria’s unorthodox Featherweight star Patrick Ocheme, who looks to demolish Burkina Faso’s Abdoul Razac Sankara. Following a “Knockout of the Night” performance during his last outing in Johannesburg, Sanakra looks to once again show out inside the PFL Africa Smart Cage.