Live from Dublin, Ireland, the Professional Fighters League Europe has been aiming for this night all year. On Friday, Dec 8, PFL Europe 4: 2023 Championships will go down. This night of fights will feature four tournament finals, plus much more action.
In each tournament, the PFL MMA began with eight European fighters. Now, in each division, we are just down to two athletes. Each fighter has a chance to capture this impressive title and a $100,000 cash prize to add.
Combat Press writer Timothy Wheaton breaks down the night’s main fights.
PFL Europe 4: 2023 Championships
Main Event – Nathan Kelly vs. Dimitry Solimeis
The main event will be a featherweight showdown between Ireland’s Nathan Kelly (8-2) and Dimitry Solimeis (6-3), of France. Kelly is a SBG Ireland-trained fighter who is on an impressive eight-fight winning streak. Despite being a jiu-jitsu-based fighter, the 26-year-old has an equal amount of wins via submission as he does by knockout.
Fans of European MMA will be familiar with Shem Rock, who is now a ranked fighter in Oktagon MMA. One of Kelly’s most notable wins is giving Shem Rock his first and only loss when they met in 2021. He was able to walk away with a first-round knockout.
Kelly utilizes fast and powerful hands, he dashes into range and will throw a flurry. Then, he will transition this success into a grappling sequence. In his PFL debut, he landed 21 significant head punches, before finishing the fight via submission just two minutes and 45 seconds into the opening round.
Solimeis is a heavy-handed striker who aims for the knockout win. He uses fast hands throwing straight punches. For good measure, the French-born striker likes to mix in flying knees at his opponents. While he is a striking-based fighter, he has displayed reasonable takedown defense and the ability to defend against submissions as he looks to get back to his feet. Habitually, he looks to the center and pushes aggressively.
A fast striker facing off against an aggressive puncher, the PFL Europe 4 main event is projected to be an exciting one. Whoever wins, it will likely be by knockout.
Bantamweight Championship – Khurshed Kakhorov vs. Frans Mlambo
“The Black Mamba” Frans Mlambo (15-5) has been slicing through the competition putting together an impressive seven-fight winning streak. The Irish-South African athlete is a staple of the SBG Ireland gym. Two victories in this tournament have put him in the final for the championship and a $100,000 prize.
The 32-year-old is light on his feet with a stiff and piercing jab. Additionally, Mlambo is looking to evade and counter-strike. He’ll vary a jab or a flurry to keep his opponents guessing. Plus, he wants to get the biggest victory of his career in his home of Dublin.
“Killer” Khurshed Kakhorov (11-1) is looking to upset the hometown hero Mlambo. Kakhorov has created a full-rounded MMA game under the tutelage of the Xtreme Couture coach Dewey Cooper. With two wins down, there is just one more in this tournament for Kakhorov.
The 31-year-old German is a kickboxing-based fighter. Kakhorov primarily throws strikes from his quiver full of various and dangerous kicks. From low kicks and teeps, to body kicks and head kicks, his legs are a dangerous arsenal.
Two highly skilled strikers with differing striking backgrounds and styles will clash in the finals. It is expected to be an impressive show.
Lightweight Championship – Jakub Kaszuba vs. John Mitchell
The PFL Europe lightweight final will see Ireland’s John Mitchell (8-1) face off against the unbeaten Polish-American Jakub “The Auditor” Kaszuba (10-0). Ireland’s own Mitchell will look to extend his four-fight winning streak and capture the world title.
Throughout his career Mitchell has trained at SBG Ireland for MMA, as well as Bangtoa for Muay Thai in Bangkok, Thailand. he will be aiming for a knockout finish in this tournament final.
Undefeated Kaszuba is coming off of an impressive win against Dylan Tuke. He is an aggressive fighter with a wrestling background. He will quickly seek out a takedown and land ground-and-pound from the top position.
Mitchell will be looking to land skilled strikes while Kaszuba aims to earn a double-leg takedown. It will be a battle of initiative.
Flyweight Championship – Dakota Ditcheva vs. Valentina Scatizzi
“Dangerous” Dakota Ditcheva (9-0), of England, will meet Italy’s Valentina Scatizzi (2-1) in the flyweight finals of this tournament. The unbeaten Ditcheva is looking to extend her impressive knockout win in Dublin. Sporting an 80-percent knockout win rate, Ditcheva shows off her sharp kickboxing-based skills.
The English striker grew up on the kickboxing tutelage of her world champion kickboxer mother Lisa Howarth. Through this time, Ditcheva was able to earn an ISKA title in kickboxing. Once she transitioned to MMA, she began training at Manchester Top Team and American Top Team.
The Italian Scatizzi is training full-time at SBG Ireland currently. For this matchup, she will be considering the Dublin crowd as her hometown fans. The athlete looks to close the distance, clinch, and earn takedowns in her matches.
Scatizzi will look to close the distance in this fight and get a takedown, while Ditcheva will be aiming with intent to score a knockout.
Light Heavyweight Championship – Jakob Nedoh vs. Simeon Powell
The light heavyweight final will see Slovenia’s Jakob “The Gorilla” Nedoh (7-1) face off against the unbeaten “Smooth” Simeon Powell (9-0), of England. Training out of Great Britain Top Team, Powell is a slick knockout striker. He will look to evade and sidestep, looking to land counter-punches. Most notably, Powell has a long jab that he uses to control the range and tempo of fights.
The knockout machine Nedoh will look to add another knockout to his record in Dublin, and take home $100,000 for his efforts in this tournament final match. Currently, Nedoh is on a five-fight, first-round-knockout winning streak. In fact, in his entire career, all of his victories were earned in the first round.
Nedoh is an aggressive striker who throws with full power in all of his punches. He will plant his feet and begin throwing flurries, mixing head and body, with hooks, uppercuts, and overhands. The Slovenian striker is in a rush to finish the match.
This match is expected to be fireworks. Nedoh will be looking for a knockout while Powell aims to control the fight.
PFL Europe 4: 2023 Championships Fight Picks
| Fight | Tim’s Picks |
| FW: Nathan Kelly vs. Dimitry Solimeis | Kelly, |
| BW: Khurshed Kakhorov vs. Frans Mlambo | Mlambo |
| LW: Jakub Kaszuba vs. John Mitchell | Mitchell |
| WFLW: Dakota Ditcheva vs. Valentina Scatizzi | Ditcheva |
| LHW: Jakob Nedoh vs. Simeon Powell | Powell |
| LW: Yazid Chouchane vs. Dylan Tuke | Tuke |
| BW: Lewis McGrillen-Evans vs. Weslley Maia | McGrillen-Evans |
| LW: Andreeas Binder vs. Daniele Scatizzi | Binder |
| FW: Brett Johns vs. David Tonatiuh Crol | Johns |
| WW: Tom Breese vs. Cleiton Silva | Breese |
| BW: Dominique Wooding vs. Ben Davis | Wooding |
| LW: Connor Hughes vs. Sebastian Santana Guedes | Hughes |
| AmFW: Nate Kelly vs. Calum Seaton | Kelly |