Kendly St. Louis Found the Rear-Naked Choke
Kendly St. Louis submitted Mukhamed Berkhamov at Nashville Municipal Auditorium on June 12, 2025. The PFL welterweight contest ended with a rear-naked choke at 3:21 of the third round after both fighters had created opportunities during earlier grappling exchanges.
Berkhamov answered the first submission attempts
St. Louis attacked a guillotine during the opening round, but Berkhamov escaped and advanced through strong top positions. He finished that round delivering strikes after reaching mount.
The second round included more takedowns and clinch exchanges. St. Louis created a reversal and pressured against the fence, while Berkhamov continued finding ways to answer and regain position.
A third-round back take changed the outcome
Berkhamov escaped another guillotine attempt in the final round. St. Louis then completed a takedown, reached the back and established a body triangle.
After briefly releasing his first choke attempt to strike, St. Louis secured the hold again and forced the tap. The submission ended the contest before the judges could assess the preceding rounds.
The finish overcame an experienced submission threat
Berkhamov entered with ten submission victories and previous wins over notable welterweights, including Ray Cooper III. His latest tournament appearance had ended in defeat against Thad Jean.
St. Louis had previously won Challenger Series contests against Nick Alley and Paulo Henrique. The Nashville result added another significant victory, earned through persistence after earlier attacks failed and an opponent with substantial grappling experience repeatedly escaped dangerous positions.
Sources
- PFL: early escapes, positional changes, final body triangle and rear-naked choke
- MMA Fighting: June 12 result and 3:21 third-round finish
- PFL: Nashville venue and official submission outcome
