The ''PFL 4''

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

event for the 2021 season of the

Professional Fighters League The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) promo ...

was held on June 10, 2021. This was the fourth regular season event of the tournament and included fights in the

Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, t ...

and

Lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight ...

divisions.

Background

The event was to be headlined by a lightweight clash between the former

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

and WEC Lightweight champion

Anthony Pettis Anthony Paul Pettis (born January 27, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He is currently signed to the Professional Fighters League. Pettis formerly fought in the Welterweight, Lightweight, and Featherweight divisions of th ...

and undefeated Alexander Martinez. However, Pettis withdrew due to illness and Martinez instead faced

Natan Schulte Natan Silveira Schulte (born February 20, 1992) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of the Professional Fighters League. Background Natan Schulte was born in Joinville, where he has family, and started tra ...

. Schulte's opponent

Raush Manfio Raush Manfio Lourenço (born November 3, 1991) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist who competes in the lightweight division of the Professional Fighters League. On October 27, 2021, he won the PFL lightweight championship belt. Figh ...

- who replaced an injured Mikhail Odintsov- will now face Pettis at PFL 6 on June 25, 2021. In the co-main event, the 2011 NCAA Division I champion

Bubba Jenkins Bubba Jenkins (born February 5, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist and former amateur wrestler. He currently competes in the featherweight division of Professional Fighters League. He has also notably competed for Bellator MMA, Absolute ...

was to face Anthony Dizy. However, Dizy withdrew and Jenkins instead faced

Bobby Moffett Robert "Bobby" Thomas Moffett (born June 1, 1990) is an American mixed martial artist (MMA) who competes in the Featherweight division of the Professional Fighters League (PFL). A professional since 2013, he has also competed for the Ultimate Fig ...

. Boxing champion and Olympic gold medalist

Claressa Shields Claressa Maria Shields (born March 17, 1995) is an American professional boxer and mixed martial artist. She has held multiple world championships in three weight classes, including the undisputed female light middleweight title since March 20 ...

made MMA debut on the main card of this event against Brittney Elkin.

Dana White's Contender Series Dana White's Contender Series, formerly named Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series, is an American mixed martial arts promotion. In May 2017, the UFC announced White would hold the competition weekly on UFC Fight Pass (It has since been move ...

alumni

Brendan Loughnane Brendan Loughnane (born December 5, 1989) is a British professional mixed martial artist. He competes in the Featherweight division of the Professional Fighters League (PFL). Loughnane has been a professional competitor since 2010, and competed i ...

faced The Ultimate Fighter 27 contestant Tyler Diamond to round out the main card. Lazar Stojadinovic was supposed to face

Lance Palmer Lance Palmer (born February 7, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former collegiate wrestler. He currently competes in the featherweight division of Professional Fighters League, where he is the 2019's tournament champi ...

, but it was announced he would not compete at PFL 4. Palmer was then scheduled to face Jesse Stirn. However, Palmer and Movlid Khaybulaev were later scratched from their bouts and rebooked to face each other at PFL 6. Their original opponents, Jesse Stirn and

Sheymon Moraes Sheymon da Silva Moraes (born October 11, 1990) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist (MMA) who competes in the Featherweight division of Professional Fighters League. A professional mixed martial artist since 2012, Moraes has also competed in the ...

, faced each other at this event instead. At weigh-ins, Joilton Lutterbach and Jesse Stirn weighed in at 159.4 and 146.8 pounds, missing weight by 3.4 and .8 pounds respectively. They were fined 30 and 20 percent respectively of their purses, deemed ineligible to win playoff points, given a walkover loss, and were penalized one point in the standings. Their opponents

Clay Collard Clay Collard (born March 10, 1993) is an American professional mixed martial artist and boxer. A professional since 2011, he formerly competed for the UFC. He currently competes in the lightweight division of the Professional Fighters League. ...

and

received a walkover win regardless of bout outcome but are eligible to gain stoppage points.

Results

Standings After Event

The PFL points system is based on results of the match. The winner of a fight receives 3 points. If the fight ends in a draw, both fighters will receive 1 point. The bonus for winning a fight in the first, second, or third round is 3 points, 2 points, and 1 point respectively. The bonus for winning in the third round requires a fight be stopped before 4:59 of the third round. No bonus point will be awarded if a fighter wins via decision. For example, if a fighter wins a fight in the first round, then the fighter will receive 6 total points. A decision win will result in three total points. If a fighter misses weight, the opponent (should they comply with weight limits) will receive 3 points due to a walkover victory, regardless of winning or losing the bout; if the non-offending fighter subsequently wins with a stoppage, all bonus points will be awarded.

Lightweight

Featherweight

♛ = Clinched playoff spot --- E = Eliminated

References