McKee’s night of fights ends with sharp finishes

PFL San Diego streamed with a string of early finishes that reshuffled several prospects fast—headed by Cobey Fehr’s brabo choke win over Daniel Bzdigian, Shannon Clark’s TKO over Ilara Joanne, and Khasan Magomedsharipov’s dominant submission of Joshua Weems.

Tonight in San Diego, the cage felt less like a schedule and more like a sprint. A short, nine-fight offering carried the kind of momentum fans usually have to wait a card or two for—especially with fights decided before the final minutes could fully arrive.

The night’s opener set the tone immediately. Cobey Fehr (3-0. 1 NC; 0-0 PFL) made his mark against Daniel Bzdigian (0-0. 0-0 PFL) in a debut that started as a fist-bump moment before the violence turned methodical. Fehr introduced himself with a pair of low kicks. used the second to set up a single-leg takedown. and dropped Bzdigian down into a grind of ground-and-pound. Bzdigian tried to maneuver—pushing his feet off the fencing for position—but Fehr kept dropping pressure.

Then the fight snapped. Bzdigian turned to his stomach and moved into brabo choke danger. In the scramble that followed, Bzdigian twisted the wrong way and tightened the choke Fehr had fastened around his neck. As Fehr “crushes down on his windpipe,” Bzdigian tried to sit up, but consciousness slipped quickly. Fehr dismounted, ran circles around the cage, and climbed it to let out celebratory screams.

The Official Result: Cobey Fehr def. Daniel Bzdigian R1 2:00 via Submission (Brabo Choke).

A flyweight clash followed, built around contrasting momentum. Joanne (13-10. 2-2 PFL)—the real name of the fighter nicknamed “Arya Stark”—met Canada’s Clark (7-1. 0-0 PFL) under referee Jonathan Romero. They took their time reaching each other and did not bump fists. Punches were thrown from far out of range, with both women missing by little margins that still felt sharp. Clark landed a couple low kicks. Joanne answered with a right hand over the top—then did it again. enough to start turning Clark’s face red.

Joanne changed the fight when Clark swung big. Joanne ducked, tackled her to the mat, and worked from guard with hammerfists. Clark stayed active from her back with constant movement and elbows that kept Joanne’s offense from settling. Joanne stepped to side control looking to wrap up the neck, but an awkward scramble sent both women back up.

Clark tried a last-ditch guillotine from a jump guard as the bell sounded—yet it didn’t take.

Sherdog Scores for Round 1: Jay Pettry 10-9 Clark; Mike Pendleton 10-9 Clark; Tristen Critchfield 10-9 Clark.

Round 2 made the difference in the way damage accumulated. Clark kicked early and often, mixing low kicks and pushing forward into exchanges. When Joanne answered, Clark kept coming, even walking into overhand right counters. That didn’t slow her—she shifted into clinch work. bent Joanne over to knee her in the head several times. and kept layering punishment until Joanne crumbled to the floor.

Clark rolled her over and added knees to the stomach, forcing Joanne into the guard facing submissions. Joanne attempted a triangle from the guard, then transitioned toward an armbar. Clark escaped and smothered, opening space for more pressure from Joanne. Clark absorbed the threat. hammered Joanne with her elbows through it. and finished the round with an emphatic kick to Joanne’s posterior. Romero told Joanne to get up. Joanne took her time standing. with a fresh cut on her right eyebrow immediately leaking blood down her cheek. but she still tried to bowl Clark over into the guard.

In the end, Clark used Joanne’s position against her again—elbows swiping like blades, a can-opener maneuver working her back to her feet, and knees pounding Joanne while she was leaned against the cage wall.

Sherdog Scores for Round 2: Jay Pettry 10-9 Clark; Mike Pendleton 10-9 Clark; Tristen Critchfield 10-9 Clark.

Round 3 was a continuation of the same threat: Clark winning the timing and making Joanne’s body fail first. Clark kicked her way into range. set up knees to the body repeatedly. and watched Joanne’s legs give way as the punishment ramped up. After Joanne collapsed, Clark drove home ground strikes—but Joanne wall-walked upright again and tried to keep fighting. It didn’t last. Clark continued with knees and fists and finished with the kind of stoppage that comes after the referee decides the fight can no longer protect the athlete.

Romero stepped in as a mercy stoppage. Joanne was a “busted muay thai heavy bag” at that point. Clark walked away relieved the fight was over—her first win in a major organization, and her first knockout in years.

The Official Result: Shannon Clark def. Ilara Joanne R3 1:43 via TKO (Knees and Punches).

The night also carried controversy and sting in the middle of its violence. Sarvarjon Khamidov (16-1. 0-1 PFL) returned for a comeback against Justin Wetzell (12-3. 2-1 PFL) after. as described. Khamidov biffed weight by two pounds. The miss meant handing over a healthy chunk of his purse to Wetzell. Referee Blake Grice stood by as Khamidov rushed forward immediately, backed Wetzell up, and cracked him with an overhand right. Wetzell hit the deck, then used the fence to return upright while Khamidov controlled him with short knees.

The fight slowed into grinding top control, with Grice warning Khamidov for eye gouging as his fingers raked across Wetzell’s face. Khamidov’s work kept Wetzell from escaping. He ended the round with a barrage of strong elbow strikes.

Sherdog Scores for Round 1: Jay Pettry 10-8 Khamidov; Mike Pendleton 10-9 Khamidov; Tristen Critchfield 10-9 Khamidov.

In Round 2, Khamidov kept attacking. He walked Wetzell down and landed more punches. mixed in power shots. and followed with wrestling that included a body lock takedown from behind. Wetzell stood back up and regained moments of space with his back to the cage—until Khamidov took it away again and returned him to the mat.

This time the finish grew from control. Wetzell gave up his back. Khamidov climbed on him and wrapped a body triangle with his legs and a one-armed rear-naked choke with his right arm. Wetzell hand-fought the other limb to stop the choke from locking. Grice still watched as Khamidov tightened a face crank right down on Wetzell’s mouth.

As they hit the mat. the forearm under the chin transformed the choke into a rear-naked choke so tight that Wetzell fought it but went limp—possibly in hopes of taking pressure off his neck. Grice tested his resistance. Wetzell waved off the stoppage when he felt no pullback and protested loudly. leaving a question hanging over whether he went out fully. was flash choked out. or was sandbagging.

Even with the stoppage, controversy remained: it circled back to the weight miss and the nature of the stoppage.

The Official Result: Sarvarjon Khamidov def. Justin Wetzell R2 4:11 via Technical Submission (Rear-Naked Choke).

Far earlier on the card, another fight reflected how quickly the favorites could claim space. Jena Bishop (10-3, 4-3 PFL) met Ariane Lipski da Silva (18-11, 1-0 PFL) with referee Mike Beltran overseeing. Lipski da Silva arrived fresh off a win in her PFL debut in March. and Bishop—despite dealing with a level change from Lipski da Silva at range—ended up on her back when Lipski da Silva defended well and twisted for reversals.

Bishop eventually landed enough control to set up an armbar attempt. When Bishop’s back touched the canvas, Lipski da Silva tapped out as there was nothing left to do.

The Official Result: Jena Bishop def. Ariane Lipski da Silva R1 4:08 via Submission (Armbar).

In the next submission-heavy exchange. Magomedsharipov (10-0. 0-0 PFL)—the younger brother of former ranked UFC fighter Zabit Magomedsharipov—returned to the cage after two years off to face Joshua Weems (17-8. 0-0 PFL). The betting favorite status was described as astronomical with odds listed as -4000 in Magomedsharipov’s favor. When Weems threw a naked kick, Magomedsharipov planted him with an overhand right that put Weems flat. Weems did not look overly compromised as he closed his guard and wrapped an arm around the back of the head to avoid exposing himself to a Von Flue choke.

But damage showed up. Something Weems offered off his back damaged Magomedsharipov’s nose, which started leaking big time on Weems’ chest. Magomedsharipov passed guard and presented an arm-triangle choke. He stepped over across the body. locked it in. switched his grip to fasten it securely. and Weems—anticipating the danger—tapped out before he got put to sleep.

The Official Result: Khasan Magomedsharipov def. Joshua Weems R1 2:10 via Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke).

The night’s momentum also shaped up in the heavyweight-to-light-heavyweight swing in the main card opener for a different reason: Rob Wilkinson (19-5. 1 NC; 6-3. 1 NC PFL) was described as coming in on a downslope after dropping three straight. while Britain’s Bably (8-2. 5-2 PFL) arrived with three first-round knockouts in his back pocket. The fight opened with gloves touched. Bably bounced in and out of range and waited behind haymakers. At least one monster right hand landed on “Razor Rob,” and Wilkinson frowns while circling away.

Bably kept pressing. Wilkinson tried a body kick but got nailed again. Still, Wilkinson tanked the shot, returned to his feet, and threatened a level change. Bably crashed forward and shoved the pocket. then stayed on his opponent as Wilkinson worked to escape and pressure him against the fence in Round 1.

Sherdog Scores for Round 1: Jay Pettry 10-9 Bably; Mike Pendleton 10-9 Bably; Tristen Critchfield 10-9 Bably.

Round 2 brought a shift when Wilkinson caught Bably with a right—possibly on autopilot—and dropped him into trouble. Wilkinson clinched and worked closer while Bably tried to slow him down. Wilkinson turned Bably around and knee’d him in the guts several times. Bably shot for a takedown, and the combination of body shots and defensive strikes forced him into less stable ground.

Wilkinson beat him down until Bably needed a breather. Grice asked Bably to fight back several times, but Bably did not see enough urgency to step in. Wilkinson continued landing until Grice ultimately stepped in to stop any further punishment.

The Official Result: Rob Wilkinson def. Abraham Bably R2 3:23 via TKO (Punches).

The picture emerging from San Diego wasn’t just that fights ended. It was how quickly the card began to sort winners and question marks—especially in bouts where timing, control, and even rules awareness mattered.

From Fehr’s fast. choke-finish evolution over Daniel Bzdigian to Shannon Clark’s body-first destruction of Ilara Joanne. to Khamidov’s win clouded by the weight miss and disputed stoppage details with Justin Wetzell. the night kept forcing big outcomes before anyone could settle. PFL San Diego coverage began Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, with the featherweights headline PFL San Diego: Tune in Saturday, June 27 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN 2.

One more thread ran through all of it: each result carried a different kind of meaning, whether it was a first knockout in years, a first win in a major organization, or the way a single two-pound miss and a tight choke can leave a crowd split even as the referee raises the hand.

PFL San Diego McKee vs Isbulaev Cobey Fehr Daniel Bzdigian Shannon Clark Ilara Joanne Khasan Magomedsharipov Joshua Weems Sarvarjon Khamidov Justin Wetzell Jena Bishop Ariane Lipski da Silva Rob Wilkinson Abraham Bably