Saudi Arabia’s Abdullah Al-Qahtani set for Professional Fighters League debut in Atlanta

On Friday night Abdullah Al-Qahtani will step into the ring in Atlanta proudly wearing Saudi Arabia’s colors on the international stage, in the most high-profile bout of his career.

The 24-year-old fighter from Riyadh will take on Lamar Brown of the US at the Overtime Elite Arena in the Featherweight category of Professional Fighters League, which is second only to Ultimate Fighting Championship in popularity among mixed martial arts fans globally.

“When I step out wearing the Saudi flag, I am prepared to do anything to raise it high,” Al-Qahtani told Arab News on the eve of the fight.

Few Saudi or Arab fighters have reached this level, but for Al-Qahtani, progress in recent years has been rapid, leading to tonight’s PFL debut.

Abdullah Al-Qahtani vs Lamar Brown kicks off the action tomorrow on ESPN+!

[Fri, June 23rd | 6pm ET on ESPN+ | 9pm ET on ESPN | #PFLRegularSeason] pic.twitter.com/Y6k1VBrGqe

— PFL (@PFLMMA) June 22, 2023

“I started in 2016 — there was a trial for a tournament, so I went to try out,” said the Moroccan-born fighter. “I had ambitions before that, but I didn’t really know where to go, where to begin. When I went to this trial, I met coach Firas (Zahabi, the Canadian mixed martial artist), and other fighters, and so I started on this path.

“But my biggest supporter has been my mother, God bless her. She’s the one who encouraged me to follow this career.

“I used to train every day, but at that point it was still only at beginner level,” Al-Qahtani, whose speciality is kickboxing, added. “I was trying to learn all the tools … to find a way to enter this industry. After that, I started taking part in amateur fights here and there. In 2018, I had my first offer to fight.”

At the age of 19 he