Brendan Loughnane was still standing, just, but was frozen in place when Jesus Pinedo’s knee made contact with his chin. Never before had Loughnane been stopped, or even dropped in his MMA career, but that was all about to change.
As Pinedo drilled his knee into the defending champion’s jaw, Loughnane’s knees buckled and his arms splayed for balance, only for a right hook to ensure his descent to the canvas. The fall marked the end of the Briton’s featherweight title defence, with Pinedo eventually collecting the PFL 2023 title and the best part of $1m in prize money.
