The finals of the PFL championship are edging closer. The welterweight finals will see Titan FC welterweight champion Dilano Taylor (10-2) taking on PFL veteran Sadibou Sy (12-6-2, 1 NC). The finals will be on November 25 at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden and airing on ESPN+ and ESPN PPV. The winner will net $1 million. On Tuesday, Taylor and Sy took part in a pre-fight conference call to talk about their fight. No trash-talking came between the two cordial fighters, both of whom had mutual respect for the other’s abilities.
Dilano Taylor
Taylor fought and won on the PFL Challenger series this year, earning him a shot in the playoff series. After seemingly being eliminated, he replaced Magomed Magomedkerimov due to visa issues. A TKO win over the former UFC welterweight champion in the first round secured his spot in the finals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cusSYzG7Nfw
“The ride to PFL has not been an easy ride,” Taylor reflected. “I expected this to happen. It was just a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if’.”
With such a rise one might expect that Taylor would be feeling the pressure of the expectations to succeed. “There’s never been any pressure. You tell me to go out there fight, I’m going to go out there and fight… I never put too much pressure on myself,” he said.
As for preparing against a high-level opponent like Sy, Taylor doesn’t think the Sy in previous fights will show up.
“You never know what a person’s gonna give you… He might not be the same person he was three fights ago. I am not the same person I was three fights ago.”
Saidbou Sy
Sy has been with the PFL since 2018. Like Taylor, he also beat Rory MacDonald during the playoffs. He defeated Carlos Leal to clinch a spot in the finals. The kickboxing champion in the finals for the first time since fighting for the promotion, having only gone as far as the semi-finals previously. The journey has been something else Sy said.
https://youtu.be/zBl1xWib83M
“It’s been amazing. It’s been a learning experience,” he said. “I believe I am in an amazing spot physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally.”
Preparing for this fight, Sy is not underestimating Taylor.
“Every fight is different. I believe that he’s going to be the best Dilano and he’s going to come prepared,” Sy said.
Though the road has been long for Sy to get to this point, he keeps moving forward by trying to “become the best person of myself.”
“I’m in an amazing situation to be able to do what I love. To see how far I can take this,” he said.
Sy said fans should tune in because people “should expect a banger.”
