Unbeaten French Champion Gassama to Make PFL Debut in Lyon

Unbeaten Frenchman Bafode Gassama is heading to the Professional Fighters League. The promotion announced that the former Hexagone MMA light heavyweight champion will make his PFL debut against Coby Bradford at PFL Lyon on December 19 at the LDLC Arena. Gassama, 32, brings a perfect 4-0 professional record into the bout, having captured the Hexagone title with a unanimous decision win over Lajos Papp in April. Three of his four victories have come inside the distance, marking him out as a finisher rather than a points fighter. Bradford, who stands 6-4 as a professional, will provide a stern first test: the American won his own PFL debut in July by submitting Chad Yard with a rear-naked choke in Washington, D.C. The light heavyweight clash sits on a Lyon card headlined by Taylor Lapilus against Mitchell McKee for the inaugural PFL bantamweight championship. The event is also notable as the promotion's final show before its events move under the Most Valuable Promotions banner at the start of 2027. For Gassama, a debut win in front of a French crowd would announce him as a new name to watch in the division.