McKee outpoints Isbulaev and Carmouche submits Araujo to headline PFL San Diego

A.J. McKee continued his featherweight resurgence at PFL San Diego on Saturday, outpointing Kazakh prospect Salamat Isbulaev by unanimous decision in the main event at Pechanga Arena in San Diego. The win handed Isbulaev the first loss of his professional career and moved McKee to 25-2 overall and 4-1 in PFL competition.

Competing in his home state of California, the 31-year-old Team Bodyshop fighter — a former Bellator featherweight champion in 2021 — is now 3-0 since dropping back down to the weight class where he built his reputation. The performance had the look of a man building toward another title run.

Liz Carmouche delivered the night’s most decisive finish in the co-main event, submitting Viviane Araujo with a guillotine choke 2:07 into Round 2. It was the first time a fight involving Araujo had ended inside the distance since May 2019, and the first submission loss of her professional career. The 42-year-old Carmouche, who holds the 2025 PFL flyweight championship, has now won four straight bouts inside the promotion and moves to 25-8 overall.

Carmouche spent much of a measured opening round defending in the clinch before landing a pair of late takedowns to shift momentum. When Araujo shot for a takedown in the second round, Carmouche reacted immediately — jumping guard with the guillotine already locked in. Araujo resisted briefly before tapping out.

Elsewhere on the card, Alexandr Shabliy earned a commanding unanimous decision over 2025 PFL tournament champion Alfie Davis in a lightweight bout, with all three judges scoring it 30-27. Shabliy, making his PFL debut after a Bellator lightweight title loss to Usman Nurmagomedov in September 2024, controlled the fight with sharp counters and timely takedowns. His clearest moment came in Round 2, when a left hook buckled Davis following a failed spinning attack — the bell saving the Briton from a potential stoppage.

In the light heavyweight division, 2022 PFL champion Rob Wilkinson ended a three-fight losing streak by stopping Abraham Bably at 3:23 of Round 2. A flurry of unanswered left hands on the canvas brought the referee’s intervention, handing Bably — making his light heavyweight debut — his first loss at the weight.