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\nPFL Chicago at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois, Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026. (Cooper Neill \/ PFL)<\/p>\n
After shaving her head to make weight for the fight, Liz Carmouche faced off with Jena Bishop for the second time in the main event of PFL Chicago at the Wintrust Arena on Friday.<\/p>\n
Carmouche had knocked Bishop out with seeming ease in the PFL\u2019s 2025 World Tournament. With flyweight gold on the line in the rematch, however, things played out very, very differently.<\/p>\n
Liz Carmouche fired kicks low and high early, but nearly paid for it when Bishop timed a kick and took her to the fence. Well-timed, and Bishop was able to land knees to the body, secure underhooks, and win the positional battle. What she could not do was land a takedown, with Carmouche showing impressive balance to stay upright.<\/p>\n
Back at center, Liz had the edge on the feet, with Bishop looking for an entry point. She couldn\u2019t get it, and Carmouche unloaded with some lefts and rights as Bishop covered up. Bishop was rocked, and moments later she was down after an ill-timed takedown. Carmouche was then all over her, landing a massive amount of ground n\u2019 pound. Somehow, Bishop survived, even firing an upkick or two, but Carmouche got back on top with more hammerfists flying. A ton of heavy shots landed for Liz Carmouche, but Bishop grabbed a leg and even got back to her feet, surviving the round if just barely.<\/p>\n
Carmouche fired a heavy inside leg kick to open round two. Then Bishop punched her way in, forcing Carmouche back. Carmouche went to the body with a kick. Bishop shot for a takedown, couldn\u2019t land it, but managed to get top position in the ensuing scramble. Carmouche, on her back, clamped down on Bishop\u2019s leg, preventing her from passing to guard, but ensuring that they remained grounded. Bishop began going body-head, absolutely drilling the body with heavy punches. Unfortunately, Jena then landed an elbow to the back of the head during a volley of heavy shots, resulting in the pair being stood up.<\/p>\n
No point deduction, but Bishop took a warning and lost the position. Carmouche went right on the attack after the restart, but was soon backing up with Bishop pressing. Bishop finally pinned Carmouche to the fence, grabbed a leg and took her down with just over a minute in the round remaining. With no submission open, Bishop dropped more elbows, with Carmouche looking to throw something up off her back.<\/p>\n
It took about 90 seconds, but Bishop worked her way back to a takedown attempt in round three, only for Carmouche to successfully defend it. They\u2019d end up on the fence, however, with Bishop landing her second shot. After nearly being finished in the opening round, Bishop had arguably won the second, and was on her way to claiming the third as well. This time, Bishop was able to take the back, getting a hook in, firing some punches, then adding another. That was soon a body lock, and Bishop went looking for the rear-naked choke. It was tight, but Liz defended and Bishop finished the round firing punches.<\/p>\n
Bishop put leather on Carmouche\u2019s chin early in round four, and whether the weight cut had compromised Liz was becoming a question. When they went to the ground moments later, however, it was Carmouche on top. Bishop worked on isolating a leg, with Carmouche defending and stepping across her. Back on the feet, things were looking more even, with Carmouche clearly having slowed a step. Bishop tied things up along the fence, firing knees. No takedown, and they\u2019d head to the final frame.<\/p>\n
Round five had a spirited start with both women pressing at times. Bishop connected up top with a right. She then landed a quick takedown, and immediately took the back. Soon enough, a body lock was in place. Bishop worked to get under the chin, but couldn\u2019t. Still, she was riding Carmouche like a horse. Carmouche needed to reverse, and tried to turn in while peeling off the body lock, only for Bishop to adjust and retake the back. Carmouche finally stood up, just carrying Bishop\u2019s weight. That simply resulted in falling back down. A minute left, and Bishop was looing destined to pull off a sizeable upset.<\/p>\n
After nearly being finished in round one, Jena Bishop did indeed complete the comeback, and pull off the upset.\u00a0All three judges saw the fight for Bishop, awarding her 48-47 scores. And in the process allowing her to claim the vacant PFL women\u2019s flyweight championship.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe made me cry again,\u201d Bishop quipped following the win, a reference to Carmouche revealing that she\u2019d once made the BJJ ace cry in training. Only this time, it was tears of joy. And with that performance, the jiu-jitsu world champ also proved that she can hang in a dogfight.<\/p>\n
After the win, Bishop and Dakota Ditcheva faced off, a fight expected to take place early next year.<\/p>\n