Brendan Loughnane has confirmed there is ‘no chance’ he will consider becoming PFL’s only three-division champion.
Loughnane asserted that his bout with Russia’s Timur Khizriev on November 29 will be the last time he appears in a PFL tournament.
The Manchester native takes on Khizriev in the 2024 PFL World Championship featherweight final in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with $1 million on the line.
Fellow Briton Dakota Ditcheva features in the co-main event on the Saudi card as she faces Brazil’s Taila Santon for the women’s flyweight belt.
Should Loughnane defeat his Russian counterpart, he would join an exclusive club as a two-time PFL world champion.
He would be the first male and Brit to ever achieve the historic feat, with Larissa Pacheco and Kayla Harrison the only current athletes who are part of the club.
Speaking exclusively to talkSPORT.com, Loughnane was straight to the point regarding his future following November 29.
“Listen, no way am I doing this tournament again,” he said, speaking during a tough training camp in Phuket, Thailand.
“Leave me alone. I’m switching my phone off, changing my number. If you want to ring me for a couple of super fights, I’m all ears, but don’t be ringing me for tournaments again.
“No chance. It’s not happening.”
PFL was the first major MMA organisation in which individual fighters contested bouts in a season format, rather than on a year-round basis.
The promotion founded by Donn David in 2017 currently puts on fights across six weight divisions, as well as a special ‘Super Fight’ division that is based on name and status.
In January 2023, PFL announced they had signed an exclusive deal with 27-year-old Jake Paul to make him the first fighter in the new PPV division.
Paul co-created the PFL Super Fights division in which fighters earn 50% revenue from all of their PPV bouts.
Francis Ngannou became the inaugural PFL Super Fight heavyweight champion on his MMA return in October, after dispatching Renan Ferreira in the opening round.
Each champion of the six PFL weight classes wins a championship prize of $1m every year.
But if Loughnane wins? Well, he isn’t planning a shopping spree anytime soon.
“I’ve not done much with the first one, really,” Loughnane added. “So I mean, another one’s not going to do that much for me.
“But, you know, it’s going to cement my legacy in the sport when I become a two tournament champion.
“When it’s all said and done, I want to be known as one of the greatest to ever do this thing and I’m on the right path to do it.
“I know I had a hiccup last year, got knocked out and had to come back. And here I am, you know, I’m a story where, you know, s*** hit the fan and I came back stronger. It’s just a lesson for everyone.”
Britain’s Loughnane dismantled Bubba Jenkins to win the featherweight title and $1m in New York in November 2022, and in doing so became the first British champion in PFL’s history.
He followed the likes of former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards, British MMA icon Michael Bisping and ex-Bellator champion Liam McGeary as just the fourth Briton to win a title in a major MMA promotion.
Loughnane was stunned by Peruvian Jesus Pinedo in the 2023 PFL featherweight tournament, after the latter knocked him out with a knee.
Just like his 2022 opponent, Russia’s Khizriev is known for his elite wrestling skills.
“This ain’t nothing new to me,” Loughnane added. “Bubba Jenkins was the best wrestler in America at one stage. He didn’t get me down one time.
“I’ve fought so many wrestlers my whole career and I’m going to shock so many people when this man can’t get me down.
“I think he’s going to get tired and I’m going to finish him. I think he’s going to get tired, pressing the pace.
“He’s going to try and take down, take down. He’s not going to be able to get him. And then the game plan is going to go out the window for him. And I’m going to finish him.”
Recently we have seen some of MMA’s greatest fighters continuing to battle in the age right the way into their forties.
41-year-old Jim Miller contested his 57th MMA bout at UFC 309 and made it 27 wins in Dana White’s promotion after submitting Damon Jackson in the first round.
Stipe Miocic, although looking a shadow of his former self, still went three rounds with UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones in the main event at Madison Square Garden for UFC 309.
The answer for 34-year-old Loughnane if he can see himself doing the same was simple.
“No, no. Listen, when are you going to enjoy your money? When are you going to enjoy life? This is my life,” he said.
“I don’t have a life outside of fighting. I just dedicate absolutely everything to this. And, you know, this is a young man’s game. I’m not stupid.
“As soon as we start getting to anything near 40, anything over 35 even is when it’s like, okay, come on, it’s time to start looking at other things. So let’s see where we go after this fight.
“[Hardest aspect?] Just the level of discipline and sacrifice. Like I’m sat in a room in Thailand on my own all day, just chasing my goals. And it’s not easy sometimes. It gets lonely.
“And it’s tough at the top, as they say. I’m motivated by another man that wants to beat me up in three weeks.
“I just enjoy fighting. I literally enjoy putting my gun shield in, locking the cage door and having a fight with someone. I don’t know. I like finding out.
“I feel like it’s a chess match. I like figuring out the jigsaw puzzle.”
Fans can watch Brendan Loughnane at the PFL World Championship 2024 compete for the PFL Featherweight World Championship on 29 November in the UK live on DAZN.