Hollywood, FL — Following in the footsteps of Kayla Harrison, Larissa Pacheco, and Ray Cooper III, Antonio Carlos Junior is now a two-time PFL tournament champion.
He just did it a bit differently.
ACJ won his first title with the PFL in 2021, after exiting the UFC and making the switch in promotions. That was a PFL Global title, which saw Carlos Junior (19-6, 2NC), nicknamed “Shoeface,” earn a spot in the post-season after picking up “points” in a two-fight regular season. Flash forward to 2025, and it’s a PFL World Tournament win, a grand prix format, win or go home. Antonio Carlos Junior is now the second man to win one of each, joining Movlid Khaybulaev, who also won in 2021 and 2025.
For Carlos Junior, the wins seem to come “always after a hard time in my life,” he told media oulets including Cageside Press following his tournament victory at PFL Hollywood this past Thursday. “I had a really hard time in 2021. I got out of UFC, I thought my life, my career in MMA was done, and I come here and I won the belt. It was just unbelievable.”
Then came the 2025 season and another big win. Carlos Junior submitted Sullivan Cauley, who trains alongside Ryan Bader, in Thursday’s final. “After a lot of injuries, fighting against tough guys and getting another belt – I’m the only one at light heavyweight to win two times, so it’s hard to describe right now.”
Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov and Corey Anderson are set to fight later this year, and either could be a potential opponent for Antonio Carlos Junior. However, given he trains with Dovlet, that’s a fight he’d like to avoid.
“It would be terrible if I had to fight him. We’re professionals, but it would be really terrible. I’ll talk to PFL. Dovlet is going to fight Anderson right now. I’m going to rest for a little bit, come back to help him out for this fight, and let’s see. I don’t know, I don’t know yet. I’m just trying to enjoy the belt for a while.”
Watch the full PFL Hollywood post-fight press conference with Antonio Carlos Junior above.
