PFL 6 Main Event: Kayla Harrison vs. Cindy Dandois Preview and Breakdown

In your PFL 6 main event this Friday night, it’ll be a three-round bout at women’s lightweight as Kayla Harrison (9-0 MMA, 1-0 2021 PFL, six points in the standings) takes on Cindy Dandois (16-6 MMA, 0-1 2021 PFL, no points in the standings), a fight that sees the latter battling for her playoff life.

Winners on Friday night will return on August 27 for PFL 9 inside the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel, where all three PFL playoff cards will be held this summer. The PFL Championship event will be held at a later date in a to-be-announced venue.

Let’s turn our attention back to the PFL 6 main event for now.

PFL 6 Main Event Fighter Comparison

Going into the PFL 6 main event this Friday night, defending champion Kayla Harrison is the taller contestant in this bout, standing 5-foot-8, with Cindy Dandois standing 5-foot-7.

Despite being shorter, Cindy Dandois has an arm reach advantage of four inches, 70 inches to 66 inches. One measurement they are similar in is their legs. Harrison and Dandois are level in leg reach (41 inches apiece) in the run-up to the main event on Friday.

Kayla Harrison Less Than Excited About This Fight

Harrison enters the PFL 6 main event having yet to lose in her MMA career. Most recently, Harrison won six playoff points with a first-round ground and pound finish against Mariana Morais.

Although Kayla Harrison will return to the PFL cage this Friday night, she doesn’t appear to be excited about her upcoming appearance, but it isn’t for the reason that some fans might think, saying in a recent interview:

“Well, to be honest, I was not super-pumped about it. This is one girl I didn’t want to fight– not stylistically or anything. I listened to an interview that she did where I don’t know, she has six kids and her mom just died of cancer, and this is her last hurrah. And I was like ‘Damn, I really don’t want to put the nail in the coffin.”

Later that same interview ahead of the PFL 6 main event, Harrison continued with:

“It is what it is. I’m not in charge of the matchups, I’m not in charge of matchmaking, so it’s time to go out there and do business.”

Cindy Dandois Fighting After Mother and Grandmother’s Passing

In the other corner, Cindy Dandois enters the PFL 6 main event after winning four of her last five MMA fights. The lone loss coming last fight against Kaitlin Young via unanimous decision.

As Kayla Harrison stated in her pre-fight interview, Dandois is coming into the PFL 6 main event in the aftermath of a personal tragedy in the form of her mother and grandmother’s deaths, with her grandmother dying not long after her mother passed on.

In a recent interview, Dandois was quoted as saying:

“My mom passed away. My grandma was sick and she gave up after my mom passed away, and my grandmother lived with me for years. I took care of her, as well, so, it was like leaving a lot behind, but I made my mom a promise. So, I intend to keep it. I knew the chance was there that my grandmother would pass away the moment I was here, but still, it hit me like a hammer.”

Harrison: Gold Medal Fighter and Stoppage Hunter

Harrison is a decorated judoka, winning the gold medals at the 2011 and 2015 Pan-American Games. She also won gold medals in the 2011 and 2016 Pan American Judo Championships.

Her career highlight in judo was undoubtedly becoming the first American athlete, gender notwithstanding, to win the gold medal in the sport at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. She later repeated as the gold medal winner in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

After the 2016 Summer Olympics, she ended her judo career to concentrate on MMA exclusively. Since then, she hasn’t missed a beat, winning all nine of her professional bouts inside the cage, including seven wins by stoppage.

All Harrison will have to do in the PFL 6 main event is get Cindy Dandois on the ground. If Harrison is able to dump Dandois as little as once, it’ll create all the room she needs to take control of this fight and swing the momentum into the column of the champion.

With Harrison already banking six points thanks to that first-round knockout in her last bout, she doesn’t necessarily have to try to replicate her efforts on Friday in the PFL 6 main event, as a playoff spot may already be locked up for her when this one starts.

Don’t Underestimate the Judo Skills of Dandois

Kayla Harrison may be a sixth-degree black belt in judo, but Cindy Dandois is a fine judoka in her own right. Dandois is a black belt in judo as well as a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. One big key for Dandois will be to counterattack Harrison’s offensive gameplan and use her sizable reach advantage to knock the champion off of her rhythm.

If Dandois can outbox Harrison in this bout, she could very well give her troubles. As little as one punch or combo of punches could send Harrison to the canvas and turn this into a grappling match.

At the end of the day, the PFL 6 main event may be determined by which fighter knocks down or takes down the other first.

Final Thoughts

If you turn on ESPN2 for PFL 6 on Friday night, expect some fireworks in the main event. As little as one blow can end this main attraction. Make that fridge run before the fights start, as a Kayla Harrison fight is not the time to get something to eat.

Prediction: Kayla Harrison by Unanimous Decision.

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Featured Image Credits to: Embed from Getty Images