Preview: PFL 5 ‘Cappelozza vs. Scheffel’

The stage belongs to Bruno Henrique Cappelozza.

The defending Professional Fighters League heavyweight champion will attempt to extend his promotional winning streak to six when he locks horns with Dana White's Contender Series alum Matheus Scheffel in the PFL 5 main event at Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta, Ga., on Friday night. With one finish under his belt already this season, the Brazilian knockout artist can solidify his playoff seeding with yet another impressive performance. Scheffel, meanwhile, gets the chance to play the role of spoiler and halt Cappelozza’s momentum.

PFL 5 features primarily heavyweights and featherweights — although a lightweight showdown pitting Anthony Pettis against Steven Ray is slated for the co-headliner — and begins with a preliminary card on ESPN+ at at 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT before shifting to ESPN for the evening’s main draw at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

Heavyweights

Bruno Henrique Cappelozza (15-5, 5-0 PFL) vs. Matheus Scheffel (15-8, 0-1 PFL)

There was no championship hangover for Cappelozza at PFL 2, as he rolled through British heavyweight Stuart Austin for a first-round technical knockout victory — his fifth straight within the organization. The bout demonstrated much of what the ex-Jungle Fight champion does well: a willingness to wait for openings to land power punches on the feet, a solid sprawl and an ability to methodically put foes away with purposeful ground-and-pound. Though Cappelozza showed he could persevere in deep waters in his five-round championship victory against Ante Delija at the 2021 PFL finals, it’s rare that he needs to go to the judges in his fights. That remains the only bout in 20 career appearances that has gone the distance.

Scheffel moved up to heavyweight for his PFL debut, which proved to be a rough introduction for the Dana White’s Contender Series alum. The Brazilian was dropped by Delija in the first and second rounds, the latter of which set the stage for a technical knockout defeat. While the stoppage was somewhat controversial — Scheffel appeared to wake up when his head bounced off the floor and was defending himself reasonably well from Delija’s ground-and-pound — the writing was on the wall at that point. Scheffel is a willing brawler, but his tendency to leave himself open to counters is a trait that will continue to cost him against the powerful foes he will encounter at heavyweight. Delija, for one, found openings when Scheffel was exposed after attacking with kicks.

This pairing seems tailor-made to propel Cappelozza into the playoffs with a top seed. Scheffel’s willingness to trade should play right into the Corinthians MMA product’s hands. Look for Cappelozza to find his opening, hurt Scheffel and then put his adversary away with one of his patented flurries.

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Cappelozza vs. Scheffel
Pettis vs. Ray
Wade vs. Bochniak
Ferreira vs. Abreu