Hughes scores 42-second TKO at PFL Belfast, calls out Nurmagomedov

Paul Hughes put on a show in front of his hometown fans.

The budding star earned a brutal TKO finish over Bruno Miranda just 42 seconds into the PFL Belfast main event Saturday at SSE Arena.

Hughes dropped Miranda with a left hook and swarmed him with ground-and-pound, forcing the referee to step in.

Hughes, a 28-year-old who resides in Belfast, Northern Ireland, was headlining an event at home for the first time. It was his first fight in the city since 2019 and his fourth overall.

"I made my professional debut in this exact arena just over eight years ago," Hughes said in his postfight interview. "Every single time I drove past it, I said, 'I'm gonna fight there some day.' And tonight, I made my dream come true thanks to you."

Following the win, Hughes immediately angled for a rematch against Usman Nurmagomedov.

"Usman Nurmagomedov," Hughes screamed into the microphone. "You can run. You can try to delay this rematch as long as you want. But your day is f-----g coming."

Hughes challenged Nurmagomedov for the Bellator lightweight championship in January, losing a majority decision after a thrilling fight. A rematch between Nurmagomedov and Hughes would arguably be one of the biggest fights in PFL history.

Hughes is now 3-1 since signing with the PFL in 2024. He defeated Bobby King and former Bellator featherweight champion AJ McKee in his first two fights before losing to Nurmagomedov. Hughes, who's fought professionally since 2017, is a former Cage Warriors champion.

"We're a small, wee country, but we're doing big things on the world stage," Hughes said. "I hope I'm representing you all well, because I'm going to the f-----g top."