Brendan Loughnane spent most of his PFL 5 fight against Abo Huskic fighting with one eye but still managed to win a unanimous decision.
Manchester's Loughnane left eye was left swollen midway through the first round after Huskic landed a hard right hand. The Bosnian-American found success with his awkward style as the doctor took a close look at Loughnane's injury before the second period got underway.
The Brit had a much better second round and it was all to play for in the third. Loughnane was visibly the fresher fighter as Huskic's output had slowed down. He landed the better shots and controlled Huskic on the ground to win by scores of 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27.
"I need to be better but I will be better, it’s just not good enough. I’m a perfectionist and I should be stopping guys like that. I just wasn’t pulling the trigger," Loughnane said.
"He was extremely awkward what the f*** was that guy doing? If you go into a technical match with me I’ll have it, but this guy had not read the script. He was just throwing s*** out of nowhere. Not to put him down, but I feel like I stooped myself down to his level tonight. I dropped my level and raised his."
Loughnane bagged himself three points for the win and advanced to the playoffs of the competition. The Mancuian's next fight will take place on home soil for the first time in almost four years, as PFL hosts their playoff events in London and Cardiff this August.
Former UFC veteran Stevie Ray banked himself a shot in the playoffs by submitting Anthony Pettis with a stunning modified twister. Pettis, who had already qualified for the playoffs heading into the fight, could be out of the competition after suffering a broken rib during the loss.
"It's a win over a former UFC champion so it's huge and to qualify was a bonus," Ray said after the fight. "I think that's the first twister submission in PFL history. I don't even know what to say other than I'm absolutely buzzing."
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Elsewhere on the PFL 5 card, Mattheus Scheffel produced an upset win against reigning heavyweight champion Bruno Cappelozza in the main event. There were knockout wins for Loughnane's featherweight rivals Chris Wade and Bubba Jenkins, whilst UFC flop Klidson Abreu provided another upset against top prospect Renan Ferreira, winning every round on all three judges' scorecards.
PFL will host their final event of the regular season next Friday, with two-time winner Kayla Harrison facing short-notice replacement Kaitlin Young after her original opponent Julia Budd withdrew. Former UFC standout Rory McDonald is also in action on the card.
