2025 PFL tournament results: Jean upsets Jackson to advance to finals

Thad Jean is headed to the finals of the 2025 PFL World Tournament.

The undefeated 26-year-old beat former Bellator champion Jason Jackson via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27) in the PFL Nashville main event Thursday night.

With the victory, Jean advances to the 170-pound final against Logan Storley in August. Storley beat Masayuki Kikuiri in the other semifinal matchup earlier on the card.

Jean, one of the promotion's top rising stars, eked past Jackson for the biggest win of his career. Jean had a strong start, dropping Jackson with a jab in the first minute of the fight. But Jackson survived the early adversity and secured a takedown shortly thereafter. He ended the round on Jean's back.

Rounds 2 and 3 were very competitive, with Jean outworking Jackson on the feet by a small margin.

Jean, who debuted in the PFL in 2023, improved to 6-0 in the promotion and 10-0 as a professional. The Florida-based fighter knocked out Mukhamed Berkhamov in the opening round of the tournament in April. Jean has won three of his PFL bouts inside the distance.

Jackson is now 1-2 in his last three appearances. The 34-year-old submitted Andrey Koreshkov in the PFL's April 3 main event to book his spot in the semifinals. Jackson held the Bellator welterweight title from November 2023 to June 2024.

In Thursday's co-main event, Jesus Pinedo put a stamp on his rivalry with Gabriel Braga, earning a 76-second knockout win to advance to the featherweight final.

This was the third time Pinedo and Braga squared off in the cage, with Pinedo winning their trilogy 2-1. Pinedo finished Braga by third-round TKO to claim the PFL featherweight championship in 2023. Earlier that year, Braga earned a split-decision win over Pinedo during the regular season.

Their third meeting wasn't remotely close. Pinedo clipped Braga with a thunderous right hand and then sent him to the canvas with a few follow-up punches. Pinedo jumped on Braga and landed ground-and-pound to force the referee to step in.

Pinedo will face Movlid Khaybulaev, who beat Tae Kyun Kim in the other semifinal matchup, for the PFL featherweight title in August.