PFL’s upcoming May 23 show in Brussels, Belgium, will feature former RIZIN bantamweight champion Naoki Inoue taking on 2025 PFL tournament winner Marcirley Alves, the company announced Friday.
RIZIN confirmed to MMA Fighting that Inoue will be fighting under the PFL banner as part of a fighter-loan deal between promotions, but remains under contract with the Japan-based organization.
In a 2025 interview with MMA Fighting, Inoue said “there are a lot of tough guys in the PFL” and he would love the opportunity to test himself against them one day. On May 23, he gets that chance.
Inoue (20-5) will be competing for the first time since losing his RIZIN bantamweight title to Danny Sabatello via split decision in December, snapping a four-fight winning streak. Inoue won 10 of 13 bouts in RIZIN since a short 1-1 run in the UFC in 2017-18.
Alves (15-4) was an alternate in the 2025 PFL bantamweight season and made his way to the finals with a pair of decisions over Leandro Higo and Jack Hadley before beating Justin Wetzell in the final, all three victories in a span of four months.
PFL Brussels will take place at the ING Arena and feature former UFC and WEC champion Benson Henderson against local undefeated prospect Patrick Habirora in the main event.
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