Overview

• Marcirley Alves outpointed Justin Wetzell by unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47) after five rounds in Charlotte to win the 2025 PFL bantamweight world tournament.
• Both fighters began the season as alternates and advanced through the bracket, with Alves finishing Leandro Higo and defeating Brent Primus and Wetzell earning wins over Kasum Kasumov and Mando Gutierrez.
• Wetzell dropped Alves with a flying knee in the fifth round and nearly secured a d’arce choke, but Alves escaped and held on until the final bell.
• Alves’s triumph awards him the $500,000 tournament prize and cements his rise from substitute entrant to world champion.
• Fan reactions praised Alves’s performance while questioning the judges’ scorecards, and the result intensified discussions about fighter legacies and potential PFL cross-promotional matchups with ONE Championship.