Kayla Harrison returned to the win column and made a big call out after defeating Aspen Ladd.
On the main card of 2023 PFL Championship at The Anthem in Washington, D.C., Harrison (16-1) was too much for Ladd (11-5) to handle over the course of 15 minutes, as she rebounded from the first loss of her career with unanimous scores of 30-27.
After a few initial striking exchanges, Harrison slipped as they traded kicks, but quickly recovered to bring the fight to her world on the ground. Harrison nearly completed a transition to full mount, but Ladd escaped to her feet, and nearly hit a takedown of her own. Harrison reversed the attempt though, and began landing punches from guard. Ladd eventually worked her way back to her feet, but couldn’t escape the clinch against the cage, where Harrison landed a few short strikes and a hard knee to the head before the horn.
A slip from Kayla but she recovers to score the 1st takedown of the fight!#PFLWorldChampionship LIVE NOW
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🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHI pic.twitter.com/46yrmSlSAi— PFL (@PFLMMA) November 25, 2023
Harrison entertained a few more exchanges on the feet before finding an entry for a takedown. Ladd didn’t rest and once again worked her way back up, but Harrison quickly returned the fight to the mat where she would continue her smothering pressure. An arm triangle attempt was locked in by Harrison in the closing seconds, but Ladd would not tap before the end of the round.
For the first half of the last frame, Harrison decided to test her hands against Ladd, and put together a few nice combinations. Midway through the round, she took the fight back to the mat, but Ladd reversed position. Ladd nearly had a rear-naked choke from the back, but Harrison was able to escape and reverse position. Ladd worked her way up again to the standing clinch, just to get blasted in the head with a few hard knees.
Aspen Ladd has no quit while Kayla chases the finish in the 3rd Round!#PFLWorldChampionship LIVE NOW
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🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHI pic.twitter.com/3Ipaj5bEkk— PFL (@PFLMMA) November 25, 2023
After her return to the win column was officially announced, Harrison turned her attention to calling out a potential future opponent. Although she did not say her name specifically, it can be assumed she was referring to Bellator champion Cris Cyborg.
“I’m excited PFL has acquired Bellator. I heard there’s a girl in Bellator who thinks she’s a bad b*tch,” Harrison told Dan Hardy during their in-cage post-fight interview. “Well, why don’t we find out?”
Kayla Harrison Post Fight Interview with Dan Hardy! #PFLWorldChampionship LIVE NOW
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🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHI pic.twitter.com/VuHVOQOnSN— PFL (@PFLMMA) November 25, 2023
Up-to-the-minute results of 2023 PFL Championship include:
- Kayla Harrison def. Aspen Ladd via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Derek Brunson def. Ray Cooper III via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-25, 30-25)
- Jesus Pinedo def. Gabriel Braga via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 0:58
- Phil Caracappa def. Khai Wu via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jesse Stirn def. Josh Blyden via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2023 PFL Championship.
