PFL Newcastle will play host to a showdown between two of the hottest prospects currently signed to the promotion as Lewis McGrillen takes on Matiss Zaharovs in a Featherweight contest.
The last time McGrillen made the walk in Newcastle, fans would have been forgiven for thinking the event was taking place in the heart of his native Manchester, with the arena’s energy increasing tenfold as he made his way to the Smart Cage. In what was his promotional debut, McGrillen delivered an electrifying performance against Salih Kulucan and stopped the vastly more experienced opponent with his signature left hand in the very first round.
Following an impressive first outing, the 23-year-old then signed with the PFL and his star power continued to rise four months later when he competed against Amrali Saydoshurov. After an exciting first round, which saw both men landing big, McGrillen made a small adjustment to the way in which he was throwing his left hand and caught Saydoshurov flush on the chin in the second round and sent the Tajikistan fighter crashing to the mat.
Two fights and two wins then lead to the Manchester Top Team man taking on his biggest challenge to date in the shape of Weslley Maia. The gritty Brazilian gave a stellar account of himself over the 15 minute affair and handed McGrillen his first loss as a professional. Looking to get back in the win column, ‘The McGrizzla’ will face Zaharovs.
The SBG athlete enters the bout riding a two fight win streak, on the back of two highlight reel first round finishes against Ryan Taylor and Leandro Lima. Prior to his extremely successful 2023, the Latvian had a four fight spell with BRAVE CF. Zaharovs had a solid start to life under the BRAVE banner, picking up a first round leg kick finish against Hussain Maki at BRAVE 29. He was then back in action at BRAVE 36, when he stopped Bilal Tipsaev in the third round of their Bantamweight bout.
The 28 year old was then dealt back to back losses at the hands of Gamzat Magomedov and Borislav Nikolic at BRAVE 49 and BRAVE 56, respectively, before bouncing back to winning ways in 2023.
With both men carrying a 100% finish rate heading into their 145lbs clash, fans can expect to see sparks fly when they meet inside the Utilita Arena.
