What to know about the 2025 PFL lightweight, bantamweights and women's flyweight finals

A defending PFL champion, a champ from a different promotion and a pair of tournament alternates highlight Friday's PFL fight card, which will crown three 2025 champions in Charlotte, North Carolina (9 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+; prelims at 6:30 on ESPN+).

The main event at Bojangles Coliseum pits 2024 lightweight champion Gadzhi Rabadanov against Alfie Davis. The other title fights are at women's flyweight and men's bantamweight. Liz Carmouche, who joined the PFL last year as a reigning Bellator MMA champion at 125 pounds, faces Jena Bishop. Marcirley Alves takes on Justin Wetzell in a battle of 135-pound alternates. Still to come, on Aug. 21, are finals in the three remaining weight classes: middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight. The PFL crowned champions at welterweight and featherweight on Aug. 1.

Here are some things to know about Friday's three 2025 PFL finals.

Lightweight: Gadzhi Rabadanov (26-4-2) vs. Alfie Davis (19-5-1)

How Rabadanov got here: Defeated Marc Diakiese by first-round KO on April 18; defeated Kevin Lee by first-round TKO in a June 20 semifinal.

How Davis got here: Defeated Clay Collard by first-round TKO on April 18; defeated Brent Primus by unanimous decision in a June 20 semifinal.

Number to know: 3:09.
That's the total cage time for Rabadanov in his two 2025 fights. He knocked out Diakiese in 32 seconds in April, then took an eternity -- 2 minutes, 37 seconds -- to finish Lee in June.

Fighting words: "I'm gonna put my knee on his nose, and then I'm gonna kick him in the face." -- Alfie Davis

"When was the last time he knocked out somebody with a knee? What is he talking about? It's crazy. I will smash him." -- Gadzhi Rabadanov

X factor: Khabib Nurmagomedov and his team.

Rabadanov trains in a Nurmagomedov-run gym in Dagestan, Russia, that is filled with greats who compete (or have competed) in his weight class, including the UFC's Islam Makhachev and Bellator's final 155-pound champion, Usman Nurmagomedov. How can Davis' training match that?

What to watch for: Rabadanov, the only defending champion remaining in this year's tournament, is well-rounded and disciplined, and that will come in handy against the stylish and unpredictable Davis. The 33-year-old Englishman is known to employ spinning attacks and the like, yet he only has one knockout win in his past 13 fights. Rabadanov is on a run of four straight knockouts but is built to go the distance. If Davis manages to get this fight to Round 2 and beyond, who will be the fresher and more effective fighter for the long run?

Women's flyweight: Liz Carmouche (24-8) vs. Jena Bishop (9-2)

How Carmouche got here: Defeated Ilara Joanne by first-round TKO on April 11; defeated Elora Dana by unanimous decision in a June 20 semifinal.

How Bishop got here: Defeated Kana Watanabe by unanimous decision on April 11; defeated Ekaterina Shakalova by second-round submission in a June 20 semifinal.

Number to know: 80.
That's the combined age of Carmouche,41, and Bishop, 39. While their ages are similar, their MMA experience levels are vastly different. Carmouche is in her 16th year as a pro, whereas Bishop transitioned to the sport less than five years ago after collecting a black belt and multiple world championships in jiu-jitsu.

Fighting words: "There's always that stupid part of me that decides I have to try to best somebody at their best [discipline] and see what it's about. But honestly, even though [jiu-jitsu] is her best attribute, it's not my weakest attribute." -- Liz Carmouche, on whether she'll grapple with Bishop

"She does really well when she can bully people. But I don't think I'm easily bullied." -- Jena Bishop

X factor: Level of competition.
Carmouche has been in the cage with an MMA who's who: Valentina Shevchenko, Ronda Rousey, Jessica Andrade and Miesha Tate, among others, including long-ago wins over Shevchenko and Andrade. Bishop, with just 11 MMA bouts under her belt, cannot match that experience. Her two best opponents, 2024 PFL champion Dakota Ditcheva and 2024 runner-up Talia Santos, handed Bishop her two losses.

What to watch for: When Carmouche made history with Rousey in 2013 by competing in the first women's fight in the UFC, she didn't shy away from grappling with Rousey, who had won all six of her previous MMA bouts by first-round armbar submission. And Carmouche did put Rousey in deep trouble in the first minute -- before the 2008 Olympic judo bronze medalist reversed positions and locked in the first-round armbar. Carmouche is a jiu-jitsu black belt, but she will be in the cage with a jiu-jitsu world champion who has zero knockout wins in MMA. Will Carmouche use her strong wrestling not for takedowns but to keep the fight standing?

Bantamweight: Marcirley Alves (14-4) vs. Justin Wetzell (12-2)

How Alves got here: Defeated Leandro Higo by split decision on April 11; defeated Jake Hadley by unanimous decision in a June 20 semifinal.

How Wetzell got here: Defeated Kasum Kasumov by unanimous decision on April 11; defeated Mando Gutierrez by unanimous decision in a June 20 semifinal.

Number to know: 15.
That's the combined number of fights these two have seen canceled during their careers. Alves has had eight cancellations since making his pro debut in 2017, with seven coming this decade, including one earlier this year. Wetzwell has had seven cancellations since starting his career in 2016. It takes a certain resilience to fight through that.

Fighting words: "Fighting defensively, you're fighting to someone else's style. It isn't gonna win you the fight. ... My game plan for this [fight] is focused on my offense, not necessarily on what Marcirely is gonna bring and reacting to that. I have to be the offensive person if I'm gonna win." -- Justin Wetzell

"For sure, the fight on the feet [is to my advantage]. Anything on the feet, I know he's just gonna want to make it a boring fight." --Marcirley Alves