Professional Fighters League (PFL) will stage its second-to-last fight card of 2025 when the promotion lands at LDLC Arena on Sat., Dec. 13 in Decines-Charpieu, Lyon, France. The event will stream live on the ESPN App (U.S.) as well as DAZN (France, Belgium, UK&I), Combate (Brazil) and Stan Sport (Aus).
Headlining the card will be the heavyweight title fight between Vadim Nemkov (19-2, 1 NC) and Renan Ferreira (13-4). Nemkov has not lost in nearly a decade and Ferreira — three years older than his
Russian opponent at 36 — is looking to rebound from his Francis Ngannou loss at “Battle of the Giants” in late 2024.
“Everyone knows about my violence,” Ferreira said ahead of his combat sports return. “They know about my knockout power, I can connect at any moment. We’re going to wage war, right? Nemkov … I’m going to be your biggest problem.”
Nemkov will be cornered by heavyweight legend Fedor Emelianenko.
“Renan is a strong opponent, tall, fast,” Nemkov told DAZN. “He has a strong punch as well. The prediction is to win. It will be a very tough fight for me, as well as for him, and I believe for the fans it will be a very interesting fight to watch. Fedor is a great coach. He has a lot of experience, he fought a lot. Because being the athlete, for him, I want to continue winning. I don’t want to let him down. That’s my goal, to continue winning and represent his team.”
The PFL Lyon co-main event will see the return of 145-pound legend Cris Cyborg (28-2, 1 NC), who tangles with undefeated Aussie star Sara Collins (6-0). Like Ferreira, Cyborg has not seen action since her performance at “Battle of the Giants” in Riyadh, where she won a hard-fought battle against Brazilian nemesis Larissa Pacheco.
This marks the “SmartCage” debut for Collins, who choked out Leah McCourt for Bellator MMA in late 2024.
“After 20 years in this sport, this is gonna be my first opportunity to fight in Europe,“ Cyborg said. ”I’m very grateful and excited to fight, I know I have a lot of fans there. I hope you guys enjoy the moment. I’m gonna give it my best and bring the victory to Brazil and I hope you guys enjoy the fight.“
Collins made her pro debut in late 2019, back when Cyborg was featherweight champion in Bellator MMA.
“I didn’t think it would ever happen, I’m really excited,” Collins told Bloody Elbow. “From the start she’s always been the top dog in the women’s featherweight division so I’ve always looked at her as like ‘the end goal’ so it’s always been about just training to prepare to one day fight Cyborg. I didn’t think it would actually ever come and then here we are and it’s happening so I’m super excited, very fortunate.”
This weekend’s PFL Lyon lineup, which gets underway at 11 a.m. ET, will also feature the PFL Europe Bantamweight Final between Baris “The Sniper” Adiguzel (9-1) and Dean Garnett (14-3-1), as well as the PFL Europe Lightweight Final pitting Connor Hughes (12-2) against Aleksandr Chizov (12-3).
Check out the finalized PFL Lyon fight card below:
PFL Heavyweight World Title Main Event: Vadim Nemkov (19-2, 1 NC) vs. Renan Ferreira (13-4)
PFL Women’s Featherweight World Title Co-Main Event: Cris Cyborg (28-2, 1 NC) vs. Sara Collins (6-0)
Welterweight Main Card Bout: Patrick Habirora (7-0) vs. Kevin Jousset (10-4)
Bantamweight Main Card Bout: Taylor Lapilus (22-4) vs. Liam Gittins (13-4)
Featherweight Main Card Bout: Asaël Adjoudj (10-1) vs. Fred Dupras (9-2)
PFL Europe Bantamweight Final: Baris Adiguzel (9-1) vs. Dean Garnett (14-3-1)
Light Heavyweight Showcase Bout: Boris Atangana (7-0) vs. Guilherme Soares (17-7)
PFL Europe Lightweight Final: Connor Hughes (12-2) vs. Aleksandr Chizov (12-3)
Bantamweight Showcase Bout: Gustavo Oliveira (11-2) vs. Movsar Ibragimov (7-0)
Women’s Flyweight Showcase Bout: Paulina Wisniewska (6-0) vs. Sabrinna de Sousa (4-0)
Bantamweight Showcase Bout: Rayan Balbali (1-0) vs. Levi Batchelor (2-0)
“French MMA fans have been tremendous supporters of the PFL, and we are proud to deliver a card worthy of their passion and loyalty,” said PFL CEO John Martin. “On December 13 at the LDLC Arena in Lyon, fans will experience some of the biggest names and most exciting matchups in the sport, a true showcase of world champions, rising stars, and hometown heroes.”
For more PFL news and notes click here.
