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Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff Writer
A pair of light heavyweights emphatically punched their way into the 2023 PFL finals Friday — but the big story was 27-year-old featherweight Jesus Pinedo.
Pinedo (22-6-1), who is from Peru, scored a massive upset over top-seeded Bubba Jenkins in San Antonio, as he finished off the former NCAA Division I national champion wrestler with a standing TKO at 4:40 of the second round.
Jenkins (21-7), who was seeking his second consecutive trip to the PFL finals, tried to utilize his wrestling to dictate the 145-pound bout, but Pinedo wasn’t having it. He repeatedly stuffed Jenkins’ increasingly desperate attempts to get him to the floor and thoroughly demolished him on the feet. He hurt Jenkins multiple times in the first and second rounds, before referee Kerry Hatley finally waved it off.
Pinedo’s key weapons were the jab and straight left hand. He found Jenkins’ chin again and again, and badly hurt his right eye in the process. Jenkins did manage to get him down at times, but only in completely defensive positions. Hatley ordered a key stand-up in the second round, in which Jenkins forfeited a top position he never regained.
Pinedo, who formerly fought in the UFC, will face Brazil’s Gabriel Alves Braga (12-0), who took out Chris Wade (23-10), another former PFL finalist. Braga also showcased impressive defensive wrestling en route to his first PFL finals berth.
The featherweight main event overshadowed two standout performances in the 205-pound division by Josh Silveira (12-1) and Impa Kasanganay (14-3). Silveira, the son of famed MMA coach Conan Silveira, knocked out Ty Flores in the first round with vicious standing knees from the Thai clinch. Kasanganay earned his finals berth with a highlight one-punch knockout of Marthin Hamlet in the opening round.
The entire night played out as a changing of the guard, as all four winners advanced to the finals for the first time over more established names.
The PFL 2023 playoffs will continue with the heavyweight and female featherweight divisions Aug. 18 in New York.