Hughes’s Head Kick Sent Van Steenis Down
Connor Hughes knocked out Gino van Steenis in their PFL Europe lightweight semifinal on September 26, 2025, in Nantes, France. A head kick ended the contest at 2:56 of the first round and secured Hughes a place in the December championship final.
The semifinal carried another chance at the title
Hughes had reached the previous season’s final before losing to Jakub Kaszuba. His return to the tournament brought an opportunity to move back into the championship matchup.
He arrived in Nantes after defeating Lucas Di Franco in May. Van Steenis stood between him and another final on a card featuring both lightweight and bantamweight tournament semifinals.
Kicks gradually opened the decisive target
Hughes advanced with low kicks while van Steenis circled and looked to answer with punches. The movement made finding a clean finishing opportunity an important part of the early exchanges.
Hughes added kicks to the body before attacking upstairs. The change of target produced the decisive head kick, which dropped van Steenis and ended the contest before the opening round was complete.
Chizov became the opponent for the championship match
The result paired Hughes with Alex Chizov, who won the other lightweight semifinal against Claudio Pacella on the same Nantes card. Their victories established the finalists for the December event in Lyon.
Hughes therefore left France with a knockout and a defined next tournament assignment. The belt was still to be decided in the final; this performance secured his place in that deciding bout through a single emphatic finishing strike.
Sources
- PFL: semifinal finish and final qualification
- PFL: Hughes fight record
- PFL: Nantes event and weigh-in results
