Saudi Arabia’s Abdullah Al-Qahtani is determined to make his mother and country proud when he competes in the Professional Fighters League (PFL)’s Champions vs. Bellator Champions MMA event in Riyadh next weekend.

Al-Qahtani’s showdown against India’s Edukondal Rao is one of 12 bouts on the unprecedented fight card at The Kingdom Arena which will see some of the best international fighters go head-to-head in the showpiece event on Saturday 24th February.

For Al-Qahtani, it will be the first time that he will be competing in Riyadh after participating in Jeddah, and although his mother will be not be in the crowd to watch him in the cage, he is looking forward to the opportunity and wants to fly the Saudi flag high.

He said: “Every professional fight I have fought in has been outside Saudi Arabia but now I have the chance to fight in my home country in Riyadh. It’s a big honour for me and I’m very excited that people will be able to watch me live. I want to put on a great show and show the world how good Saudi fighters are.

“I don’t have any brothers or sisters as I’m the only child. Therefore, my mum has supported me since I was young. She has often said she wants me to be a world champion one day and it’s because of her why I’m here today as she pushed me towards MMA. She won’t be watching the fight inside the arena but I know that she will be following me from home and it would be great if I could win for her.”

Al-Qahtani had nothing but praise for PFL and says hosting such prestigious MMA events can inspire his compatriots to follow in his footsteps.

As well as watching Al-Qahtani in action, fans can look forward to a great evening of MMA action. Headlining the card will be a battle between Heavyweight titleholders, as PFL Heavyweight Champion, Renan Ferreira meets Bellator Heavyweight Champion, Ryan Bader.

PFL Light Heavyweight Champion, Impa Kasanganay, who will fight at 185-pounds takes on Bellator Middleweight Champion, Johnny Eblen. Two-time PFL Champion Ray Cooper III faces Bellator Welterweight Champion, Jason Jackson, and in the featherweight action, PFL Champion Jesus Pinedo meets Bellator Champion Patricio Pitbull.

The card will also feature the first-ever female MMA fight in Riyadh in which two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and women’s boxing champion Claressa Shields takes on Kelsey DeSantis in a Women’s Lightweight bout.

PFL Champions vs Bellator Champions will also see Muhammad Ali’s grandson, Biaggio Ali Walsh, make his professional MMA debut. Other notable fighters on the card are Thiago Santos, Yoel Romero, Clay Collard, AJ McKee, Aaron Pico, and many more.

 Tickets are still available for the 24th February event. To purchase please visit, https://webook.com/en/events/champs-vs-champs-boxing-tickets.