Cris Cyborg added a 30th professional MMA victory and retained the PFL women’s featherweight championship after a hard five-round decision over Ketlen Vieira at PFL Tampa on Saturday night. Gadzhi Rabadanov delivered the most decisive result on the main card, stopping Tracy Reeder by TKO at 4:38 of the first round.

The Brazilian veteran won 49-46, 48-47 and 49-46 at Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Florida, surviving Vieira’s late rally in a fight that had title implications before either woman entered the cage. Vieira missed the 145-pound championship limit by 7.2 pounds, weighing 152.2 pounds, which made her ineligible to leave with the belt even if she won. The bout instead went ahead at a 153-pound catchweight, with Cyborg agreeing beforehand to vacate the title in the event of a defeat.

Cyborg, 41, started with her usual mix of pressure and power, but this was not a quick finish. Vieira came forward throughout the contest, taking the center of the cage and forcing Cyborg to fight off the back foot at times.

The champion built her early edge with body jabs, leg kicks and straight punches. A right hand in the first round visibly shook Vieira, while Cyborg’s attacks downstairs slowed the challenger as the fight went on. Vieira found a moment late in Round 2, landing hooks that appeared to briefly wobble Cyborg against the fence, but the champion did enough work across the opening 15 minutes to earn the decision.

The final two rounds brought more trouble. Vieira found success with forward pressure, counter hooks and grappling exchanges, including a throw in the fourth round that put Cyborg on her back. In the fifth, Cyborg landed an early double-leg takedown, but Vieira reversed position and spent time controlling from top guard. Cyborg eventually created space to return to her feet, and both women traded punches through the final horn.

The result extended Cyborg’s MMA winning streak to 10 and marked the first defence of her PFL featherweight title. She entered the night with questions over whether it would be her final MMA appearance, as the bout completed her PFL contract. Instead of making a firm retirement announcement, Cyborg kept her future open.

“I don’t know if I’m going to fight again, but I wanted to be a champion one more time and get my 30th victory,” Cyborg said. She also called for fights with Claressa Shields and UFC women’s bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison, who attended the event.

Vieira dropped to 16-6 after her PFL debut. The former UFC bantamweight contender moved up in weight for the Cyborg opportunity, but the major weight miss left her unable to take the championship. Her effort inside the cage still gave Cyborg a competitive 25 minutes rather than a farewell procession.

Reeder, who entered on a five-fight finishing streak and was making his PFL debut, fell to 12-6. He weighed 155.6 pounds for the lightweight contest, while Rabadanov came in at 156.0. Reeder shot for a takedown late in the round but could not complete it. Rabadanov took top position, settled into control and unloaded punches until the stoppage. The win moved the Russian lightweight to 28-5-2 and gave him a second straight victory after his run as the 2024 PFL lightweight champion.

Sabrinna de Sousa also made a case for a bigger place in the PFL women’s flyweight picture. The unbeaten Brazilian outpointed former title challenger Taila Santos by scores of 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27, improving to 7-0. De Sousa used cleaner striking over three rounds to beat Santos, who fell to 23-5.

England’s Luke Trainer closed the televised undercard with a second-round finish of Roland Dunlap. Trainer found the target with a front kick at 2:52, then followed with punches on the ground for the TKO. The light heavyweight improved to 11-1, with the win his sixth in a row.

Full PFL Tampa Results

Cris Cyborg def. Ketlen Vieira via unanimous decision, 49-46, 48-47, 49-46, to retain the PFL women’s featherweight title.

Gadzhi Rabadanov def. Tracy Reeder via TKO, punches, Round 1, 4:38.

Sabrinna de Sousa def. Taila Santos via unanimous decision, 29-28, 30-27, 30-27.

Luke Trainer def. Roland Dunlap via TKO, front kick and punches, Round 2, 2:52.

Nkosi Ndebele def. Marcirley Alves via unanimous decision, 29-28, 30-27, 29-28.

Daniel Marcos def. Magomed Magomedov via TKO, injury Round 3, 0:11.

Javid Basharat def. Movsar Ibragimov via unanimous decision, 29-28 across all three scorecards.

Dakota Bush def. Morquez Forest via split decision, 29-28, 28-29, 29-28.

Natan Schulte def. Artur Zaynukov via unanimous decision, 29-28, 29-28, 30-27.

Gino van Steenis def. Robert Watley via unanimous decision, 30-27, 29-28, 29-28.

Eoin Sheridan def. James Vake via knockout, knee, Round 1, 4:09.