Two of Cameroon’s finest mixed martial artist talents, Maxwell Djantou Nana and Octave Ayinda, are closing in on becoming pioneer Professional Fighters League, PFL Africa Champions as the continent’s top fighters continue their journey ‘on the road to Benin’, where pioneer champions will be crowned at the end of the year 2025.
The two MMA Lions are among the continent’s elite fighters to battle for a spot at the final of the inaugural PFL Africa tournament as the competition enters the semifinal stage this October.
After two groundbreaking events in Cape Town and Johannesburg, PFL announced today that finalists in the Heavyweight, Welterweight, Featherweight, and Bantamweight divisions will be decided at the semifinals in Kigali, Rwanda on Saturday, October 18.
Nana will square off with South Africa’s Justin Clarke as both men are eager to establish themselves as the face of PFL Africa’s Heavyweight division. Meanwhile Ayinda, who blasted through his previous opponent with a first-round TKO in Johannesburg to cruise to the semis, will face Angola’s Shido Boris Esperança in a highly anticipated Welterweight bout.
“My goal is to win the fight, then go for the PFL belt in December,” Nana told reporters at a training camp in Yaounde recently.
Nigeria’s Patrick Ocheme headlines event
Headlining the evening, Nigeria’s Patrick Ocheme who outworked his previous opponent in Johannesburg to secure his place in the semifinals will face Burkina Faso’s Abdoul Razac Sankara in the Featherweight semifinal main event while South Africa’s Nkosi Ndebele will battle it out with Simbarashe Hokonya from Zimbabwe in the Bantamweight semifinal co-main event of the four-bout card. PFL said additional bouts will be announced subsequently.
The event at the BK Arena in Kigali marks the biggest MMA competition ever to take place in East Africa, underscoring Rwanda’s growing reputation as a premier destination for world-class sports and entertainment.
“This is a historic moment for PFL and for the sport across Africa,” said PFL CEO John Martin. “We’re proud to bring the first-ever PFL Africa Semifinals to Kigali’s BK Arena and showcase the continent’s best on one of its premier stages.”
Winners of the semifinal bouts will advance to the league finals in Benin where the first-ever PFL Africa Champions across the four divisions will be crowned in December – opening even bigger doors for them to compete on the global stage with PFL’s goal to create the “Champions League of MMA”.
