Rory MacDonald vs. Gleison Tibau headlines PFL 5

PFL welterweight Rory MacDonald fights fellow UFC veteran Gleison Tibau in his next regular-season match in the Professional Fighters League.

The PFL made the MacDonald vs. Tibau fight announcement official on Wednesday, along with announcing the rest of the PFL 5 card. The event takes place on Thursday, June 17 at the Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Check out the full card below.

#2021PFL5 MATCHUPS ARE OFFICIAL!

Welterweights and Light Heavyweights make their final push towards the 2021 PFL Playoffs! pic.twitter.com/pRppWGHvOh

— PFL (@PFLMMA) May 19, 2021

#2021PFL5 MATCHUPS ARE OFFICIAL! Welterweights and Light Heavyweights make their final push towards the 2021 PFL Playoffs!

MacDonald, the former UFC and Bellator standout, signed with PFL in late 2019, but only just recently made his debut for the promotion after COVID-19 wiped out its 2020 schedule. In MacDonald’s first PFL outing, he took down Curtis Millender and finished him in the first round by submission. It was an impressive performance by MacDonald, who is now training at Sanford MMA alongside his former rival Robbie Lawler, and for his next bout, he has been positioned to take on Tibau, who also just recently made his PFL debut. However, Tibau wasn’t successful, as he lost a unanimous decision to Joao Zeferino in that fight.

In addition to the MacDonald vs. Tibau fight, there are a number of other interesting matchups in the PFL welterweight and light heavyweight divisions on this card, many featuring former UFC fighters. For instance, a light heavyweight bout between grapplers Vinny Magalhaes and Antonio Carlos Junior looks like fun. There’s also a light heavyweight bout between Chris Camozzi and Renan Ferreira which could be exciting as well. Though the PFL doesn’t have the name of the UFC or Bellator yet, it’s building a solid product. The addition of these veterans like MacDonald has made this tournament so much better.

Who do you think wins this welterweight bout at PFL 5 between Rory MacDonald and Gleison Tibau?