Despite McKee’s years of dominance across the divisions in Bellator, it appeared that the focus of the pre-fight build-up was on Irish prospect. A former Cage Warriors champion, Hughes opted against joining the UFC this summer in favour of a bigger money deal with the PFL.

Battle of the giants kicked off with a huge lightweight matchup between AJ McKee and Paul Hughes. One of the PFL's highest-profile free agent acquisitions during the last year, Hughes debuted in the co-main event of Bellator Champions Series: Dublin in June and stopped Bobby King in the second round.