Former PFL featherweight champion Brendan Loughnane returned to action with a bang in Chicago, but while his performance inside the PFL SmartCage was exemplary, things weren’t quite as straightforward in the lead-up to his PFL return.

Last June, Loughnane was knocked out by Jesus Pinedo in one of the shock results of the 2023 PFL season. It was the Englishman’s first defeat since 2021, and the first knockout loss of his career.

Suffering a big KO can be a major hit to a fighter’s confidence, and Loughnane verbalised that fact during his post-fight interview in Chicago following his first-round TKO of Pedro Carvalho at PFL 3.

“I want to take this moment just to say, I was actually really scared tonight, because my last fight was a knockout,” he said.

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“I got knocked out. I didn’t know whether I had it in me to even carry on in this sport after that. It was terrifying.

“I had to bite the bullet. I went to Thailand on Christmas Day, trained my ass off, and this is just to show everyone, if you really think you can’t do something, get it together and just try it, because that’s what I did. And look at the result!”

If there were internal concerns for Loughnane, they certainly didn’t show externally during his bout with former Bellator title challenger Carvalho.

The pair had enjoyed a respectful lead-up to the fight, but Loughnane was laser-focused as he easily stuffed a couple of the Dublin-based Portuguese contender’s takedown entries. Then, after catching a low kick, clipped “The Game” with a stiff right hand.

Carvalho continued to push forward in a bid to close the distance between the pair, but Loughnane timed him superbly with a rapier-like straight right that dropped his man to the canvas.

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Loughnane punished him with additional ground strikes then stepped away to assess the situation, before drilling Carvalho with one final clean right hand that forced referee Kevin MacDonald to step in and wave off the bout at the 1:26 mark.

MacDonald’s intervention was questioned by some, including legendary former referee Big John McCarthy, who was working on analyst duties for the PFL on the night. Elements of the crowd weren’t happy, either, as they voiced their displeasure at the perceived early stoppage by booing after the bout.

None of that concerned Loughnane, however, as he claimed a “quick six” victory to end the night at the top of the PFL’s featherweight standings after the first round of matchups.

“The ref’s done him a favour, to be honest,” he said.

“It should have been stopped earlier. So I don’t know why everyone booed. But hey-ho! The paycheque still clears on Monday!”