A bantamweight prelim Saturday at PFL San Diego ended in an immediate protest by a fighter who appeared to briefly lose consciousness.
It was quick, but referee Blake Grice stopped the bout after Justin Wetzell found himself locked in a Sarvarjon Khamidov rear-naked choke and briefly had his arm go limp. The stoppage by Khamidov (17-1) at Pechanga Arena San Diego came at the 4:11 mark of Round 2.
Upon Grice’s intervention, Wetzell (12-4) protested nearly immediately. Given the nature of the blood choke, it’s possible Wetzell did go out and didn’t realize it. Regardless, Tajikstan’s Khamidov picked up his first PFL victory.
Khamidov getting it done in round 3 by rear naked choke!#PFLSanDiego | Prelims LIVE NOW on the ESPN App | Main Card 10PM EST on ESPN 2 for PRELIMS pic.twitter.com/dbdJs6ewdA
— PFL (@PFLMMA) June 28, 2026
Wetzell, a 2025 PFL World Tournament runner-up, loses his second fight in a row.
Up-to-the-minute PFL San Diego results include:
- Sarvarjon Khamidov def. Justin Wetzell via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:11
- Shannon Clark def. Ilara Joanne via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 1:43
- Cobey Fehr def. Daniel Bzdigian via submission (anaconda choke) – Round 1, 2:00
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: PFL San Diego video: Out or not? Sarvajon Khamidov chokes Justin Wetzell
