The 2025 PFL World Tournaments are officially underway, and Tae Kyun Kim made sure to get them started on the right foot.
Kim (11-1) needed less than a round to punch his ticket to the 2025 PFL Featherweight semifinal. The 2025 PFL World Tournament 1 takes place at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando, Fla., and broadcasts live on ESPN 2 and ESPN+.
In the opening bout of 2025 PFL World Tournament 1, Kim dropped his opponent Nathan Kelly (11-4) with a right hand, then got his back, and sank in a rear-naked choke to put him out at the 4:53 mark of Round 1.
Below, you can watch a replay of the finish:
ITS OVER!! Taekyun Kim gets the submission in the first round and moves on to the Semifinals!!!#PFLWorldTournament
🇺🇸 LIVE NOW | ESPN+
🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHIpic.twitter.com/bpfw3RLbeL
— PFL (@PFLMMA) April 4, 2025
On top of advancing in the 2025 PFL featherweight tournament, Kim also got his hand raised in his promotional debut with the win. He was fighting with Brave CF prior to signing with PFL. Kim, who fights out of South Korea, is now on a two-fight winning streak since suffering his first professional defeat back in 2022. He's expected to take on the winner of Jeremy Kennedy vs. Movlid Khaybulaev in the semifinals.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2025 PFL World Tournament 1.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: 2025 PFL World Tournament 1 video: South Korea's Tae Kyun Kim bloodies, sleeps Nathan Kelly
