PFL Tournament 3 Update: Vinicius Cenci Replaces Alexandr Shabliy in Bracket

𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟: Your updated #PFLWorldTournament 3️⃣Fight Card

•Alexander Shabliy is out
•Vinicius Cenci steps in and replaces Shabliy in the tournament
•𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗟𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝘂𝗽: Brent Primus vs. Vinicius Cenci

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•Jordan Newman is out
•Nick Maximov… pic.twitter.com/adEzAkrkAb

— PFL (@PFLMMA) April 12, 2025

One of the lightweight favorites is out of the Professional Fighters League 2025 world tournament.

The promotion announced on Saturday that Alexandr Shabliy has withdrawn from the bracket for undisclosed reasons. As a result, Vinicius Sacchelli Cenci will step in and face Brent Primus in a first-round matchup at 155 pounds. Additionally, Nick Maximov will replace Jordan Newman in a middleweight alternate bout against Khalid Murtazaliev.

PFL World Tournament 3 takes place on Friday at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida, and features middleweight and lightweight pairings. The main card is headlined by a 185-pound tilt between Impa Kasanganay and Fabian Edwards and airs on ESPN/ESPN+ beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. The preliminary card streams on ESPN+ at 4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT.

Fighters only get one shot! Watch the PFL World Tournament LIVE Friday, April 18 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN+.

A native of Curitiba, Brazil, Cenci has won three straight outings since falling to Sam Patterson on Dana White's Contender Series in 2022. The 29-year-old known as “Chambino” owns a 10-2 career mark, with all but one of those triumphs coming inside the distance.

A former Bellator title holder, Primus made it to the 2024 PFL Championships before falling to Gadzhi Rabadanov via third-round KO this past November.

Shabliy had a nine-bout winning streak snapped in his most recent appearance, when he dropped a five-round verdict to Usman Nurmagomedov in a title bout at Bellator Champions Series San Diego on Sept. 7.