Brendan Loughnane covered in blood and bruises after beatdown from 18-0 Dagestani star Timur Khizriev

Brendan Loughnane was a bloody mess after falling short in his second PFL world title fight.

The fan-favorite Englishman was hoping to prove Dana White wrong for his brutal UFC rejection and make it two wins in a row for his home city after fellow Manchester native Dakota Ditcheva knocked out Taila Santos in the co-main event.

However, he had no answers against Dagestani star Timur Khizriev in Saudi Arabia on Friday night.

The 18-0 star was dominant in all facets of the fight he won by a unanimous decision.

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Photo credit: PFLBrendan Loughnane suffers five-round beatdownIt was a tough first round for Brendan Loughnane. The British fighter spent the vast majority of it on his back after being taken down by the undefeated Dagestani wrestler.

Timur Khizriev showed he was also a striking threat in the second stanza. The 29-year-old landed a brutal uppercut that appeared to hurt his opponent, but he was unable to capitalize on it.

Loughnane was a bloody mess by the end of round two. Khizriev’s jab opened up a cut across the former champion’s nose, but he managed to temporarily floor his rival with a jab to show he was still a KO threat.

It was more of the same in the third frame. Loughnane was hurt on the feet, dominated on the ground, and covered in blood as he tried to mount an unlikely comeback.

PFL commentator Dan Hardy speculated about a potential knee injury for Loughnane as he avoided taking too much punishment and enjoyed some striking success in round four.

Still, it was clear that he was down heavily on the cards and in need of a last-gasp knockout to win his second $1million PFL world championship fight.

Loughnane tried to turn it into a brawl during the final five minutes, but he ended up eating a flying knee to the jaw before being taken down by Khizriev.

The fight went the distance and the three cageside judges scored it 50-45, 49-46, and 49-46 in favor of Khizriev.

Brendan Loughnane reveals how Conor McGregor helped revive his fight careerBrendan Loughnane entered his latest bout on a three-fight winning streak.

A shock knockout loss against Jesus Pinedo rocked his world in June 2023.

It left Loughnane contemplating his fighting future, but then he got a late-night call from UFC superstar Conor McGregor that changed everything.

Loughnane told talkSPORT MMA: “I got a 10 pm message from Conor McGregor, ‘Fancy some rounds?’ And I thought, I’m not passing this opportunity up, why would I?

“Went down there, ended up having it with him, a full-on fight, like pretty much going for it 100%, took about four or five left straights to the chin when he’s about (176lbs).

“I thought, oh the chin still works and then I got over that hump in my head of every time I get clipped now I’m gonna fall over and it’s almost like I needed to test it and there was no better man to test it.”

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