Professional Fighters League got its “2026 Summer Series”
started off in a big way, as one of their most prominent stars,
A.J.
McKee, shined in San Diego.
The Long Beach, California, native is coming off a win over
previously undefeated challenger Salamat
Isbulaev at
PFL San Diego, a victory so impressive that CEO John Martin
proclaimed McKee the best featherweight fighter in the world.
While there is little doubt that McKee’s next fight should be for
the featherweight title, the “Mercenary” was in full go-mode after
the win over Isbulaev. Speaking to Sherdog and other media
backstage, McKee reestablished his belief in himself and then
discussed the road he will take next.
A.J. McKee Explains How He ‘Drowned’ Salamat Isbulaev in PFL
San Diego Win
“I definitely feel like I’m the best 145er in the world, and in my
eyes, I’ve never lost a fight in the 145-pound division. PFL has
the best 145-pound fighter in the world, and anybody who is willing
to test it, put your money where your mouth is and we can see
what’s up.”
A man who has shown love to the military in a multitude of ways,
McKee said he thoroughly enjoyed taking Isbulaev into deep waters,
being the first to bring the formerly undefeated fighter into the
third round. Giving a feeling of how military service members
embrace adversity, McKee embraced the opportunity.
“This fight started at a slower pace in my perspective; early on
when on the feet, I couldn’t put it together. Once I was able to
take him down, I felt it was easy and it was my go-to. I took him
down and drowned him. I knew when I saw him sitting on the floor
between rounds, I knew I had him. That third round my mindset was
kill or to be killed.”
Although he is now the first blemish on Isbulaev’s impressive
résumé, McKee knows where his most recent opponent is mentally,
giving him credit for how he approached their main event fight, and
what he’ll do moving forward.
“I’ve been that undefeated fighter. I’ve had that mentality of ‘I’m
the best’ and continuing to persevere in tough situations. It feeds
the monster inside of me when you work diligently day-in and
day-out, so to be undefeated and climb the ranks, I knew how he
felt. I had that feeling when I fought Pat Curran,
and knowing where Isbulaev was, I had to feel things out in the
first round.”
A.J. McKee vs. Alexandr Shabliy Could Be Next After PFL San
Diego Wins
Embracing the nickname of “The Mercenary,” McKee will never shy
away from an opponent and is at a place in the division where he’ll
start seeing repeated foes stand across from him, unless a new
contender emerges. As he continues to cross off names at 145
pounds, McKee said that there may be another name who is interested
in fighting him, a fighter who is currently in the lightweight
division and also won in San Diego: Alexandr
Shabliy.
A smirk ran across the face of McKee when told Shabliy’s interest
in a fight between them, a head nod of finally meeting an opponent
that has already felt like a destiny matchup.
“I’m down to fight anybody. Shabliy and I are cool, we’ve had some
words and talked a bunch of shit online, but when we get
face-to-face there’s always a level of mutual respect. I love his
skillset; he’s doing big things. I think even at lightweight we
were looking to line up against each other but the loss to Paul Hughes
and a couple other things, we didn’t get a chance to fight one
another. I wanted to show people who the best 145er in the world
was, that was the initial reason for the move back down to
featherweight, so I’m ready for whomever.
“It’s an honor,” McKee said when responding to the PFL CEO
proclaiming his spot as the top featherweight. The fame and credit
will continue to roll for McKee as long as he continues his winning
ways, but for the first event and unofficial start to the company’s
“Summer Series,” McKee got it started off to a strong start, and is
only looking for the strongest contenders in the featherweight
division.
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