Costello van Steenis successfully defended his middleweight title at PFL Madrid, securing a spectacular elbow knockout victory over Fabian Edwards.
The opening round saw a competitive exchange, but van Steenis gained a late edge. He skillfully defended a takedown attempt from Edwards and nearly locked in a guillotine choke. Although Edwards managed to defend, he lost top control, likely giving van Steenis the advantage after the first five minutes.
In the second round, Edwards once again pursued a grappling strategy, initially taking van Steenis to the ground. However, this success was brief. With roughly two minutes remaining in the round, van Steenis reversed the position, securing Edwards’ back and attempting a rear-naked choke. Edwards resiliently survived the round, even managing to get back on his feet and land some late strikes, but the overall offensive dominance remained with van Steenis, establishing a clear lead heading into the third round.
Despite his previous wrestling attempts proving largely unsuccessful, Edwards persisted with the same strategy in round three. This led to him almost being caught in another tight guillotine. As Edwards defended and attempted yet another takedown, he left himself exposed. Van Steenis capitalized on this opening, unleashing a devastating series of elbows against the cage, which rendered Edwards unconscious.
The official result was Costello van Steenis defeating Fabian Edwards via KO (elbows) at 1:48 of Round 3.
