PFL heads back to Belfast’s SSE Arena on Thursday, April 16, 2026, as local favorite Paul “Big News” Hughes (14‑3) tops a lightweight main event against New Zealand’s Jay Jay “The Māori Kid” Wilson (11‑2). The event takes place at the SSE Arena in Northern Ireland’s capital, where Hughes previously stopped Brazilian veteran Bruno Miranda in 42 seconds during PFL’s first Belfast stop in May 2025, moving his record to 14 wins and 3 losses.
PFL Belfast: Paul Hughes vs Jay Jay Wilson Announced
Hughes has made Belfast his home base for training and fighting, and he enters this bout looking to steady his path after two narrow title‑shot appearances against PFL lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov in 2025. He lost both matchups via unanimous decision in Dubai, with the first operating as a title‑unification‑style clash and the second a rematch that underlined Nurmagomedov’s hold on the division. Hughes’ swift finish of Miranda in Belfast last year reminded fans of his knockout threat and kept him in the top tier of PFL’s 155‑pound field.
On the opposite side of the cage, Jay Jay Wilson brings a 13‑fight pro record of 11 wins and 2 losses, both setbacks coming by decision. The New Zealand‑based lightweight has never been finished, which underlines the durability and toughness that fit PFL’s style. Of his 11 wins, eight are finishes, with four by KO/TKO and four by submission, blending heavy hands and solid grappling. His most recent fight was a unanimous‑decision loss to PFL No. 3‑ranked lightweight Archie Colgan, a result that tempered his rise but still left him seen as a high‑level threat.
PFL Belfast tickets open with a pre‑sale on Tuesday, February 24, at 12:00 pm GMT, followed by general sale on Wednesday, February 25, at the same time through pfl.info/belfast. The SSE Arena doors open at 7:00 pm BST on Thursday, April 16, 2026, with the main card set to kick off after midnight BST. In the United States, the preliminary card streams on the ESPN App for ESPN+ subscribers starting at 2:30 pm ET / 11:30 am PT, while the main card airs on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes at 7:00 pm ET / 4:00 pm PT.
This lightweight clash carries clear stakes for both fighters. For Hughes, a win in front of his adopted home crowd would reset his momentum after two close losses to Nurmagomedov and reinforce his claim to another title‑shot run. For Wilson, beating a top‑four ranked lightweight like Hughes would be the biggest win of his career and could place him firmly in contention in an already stacked 155‑pound division. With Hughes’ knockout power and local energy on one side and Wilson’s unbroken record and eight‑finish resume on the other, the April 16 headliner in Belfast stands as one of PFL’s most compelling one‑off bouts in 2026.
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