Jake Shields vs. Ray Cooper III headlines PFL 3 show, full card announced

The Professional Fighters League is hitting the nation’s capital this summer, with a card headlined by welterweight veteran Jake Shields and Ray Cooper III.

Formerly known as the World Series of Fighting, the PFL’s third major card will take place on July 5 at the Charles E. Smith Center in Washington, D.C.

PFL 3 will mark the continuation of the league’s 2018 season, which kicks off on June 7. The plan is for there to be 11 events showcasing fighters from six different weight classes, all competing in a regular season and playoffs leading to a show on Dec. 31 where the best fighters in each division will vie for a $1,000,000 prize.

The July 5 show sees Shields (32-9-1, 1 NC), a former Strikeforce middleweight champion and one-time UFC welterweight title contender, take on Cooper III (13-4), who is actually the son of a fighter that Shields split a pair of fights with over a decade ago.

Other notable welterweights competing on the show include Abubakar Nurmagomedov, the cousin of UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, and UFC vets Rick Story, Yuri Villefort, andPaul Bradley.

Middleweights John Howard, Eddie Gordon, Gasan Umalatov, Bruno Santos, Danillo Villefort, and Bojan Velickovic will also step into the PFL cage with UFC experience.

See the full PFL 3 card (bout order to be determined) and the poster for the event below:

Jake Shields vs. Ray Cooper III

Abubakar Nurmagomedov vs. Pavel Kusch

Rick Story vs. Yuri Villefort

Shamil Gamzatov vs. Eddie Gordon

Joao Zeferino vs. Paul Bradley

John Howard vs. Gasan Umalatov

Herman Terrado vs. Magomed Magomedkerimov

Bruno Santos vs. Sadibou Sy

Louis Taylor vs. Anderson Goncalves

Rex Harris vs. Andre Lobato

Danillo Villefort vs. Abus Magomedov

Bojan Velickovic vs. Jonatan Westin

PFL