Costello van Steenis (18-3, 3-0 PFL) will face Johnny Eblen (17-1, 3-1 PFL) at PFL Austin in Texas on June 18. This middleweight bout is a rematch of their July fight last year, where van Steenis secured victory with a rear-naked choke in the closing moments to become the new champion. The fight will determine whether van Steenis can successfully defend his title or if Eblen can reclaim the championship. Both fighters enter the rematch with strong PFL records.
PFL middleweight champion Costello van Steenis will put his title on the line against Johnny Eblen on June 18 at PFL Austin in Texas, with the rematch set to settle one of the promotion's most compelling rivalries.
Van Steenis, known as "The Spaniard," enters the bout at 16-3-0 overall and carries a 3-0 record inside the PFL. The 33-year-old from Spain stands six-foot-one with a 77-inch reach and brings a submission-oriented game to the cage, averaging 1.58 submission attempts per 15 minutes. He claimed the middleweight title in their first meeting last July, finishing Eblen with a rear-naked choke in the final moments of the fight.
Eblen, nicknamed "Pressure," holds a 16-0-0 professional record and went 3-1 in PFL competition. The 34-year-old American also stands six-foot-one but works with a slightly shorter 74-inch reach. His striking numbers stand out sharply, with 12.3 significant strikes landed per minute and a 63.4 percent striking accuracy, making him one of the more precise and active volume strikers in the division.
Why it matters
- Van Steenis earned the title with a dramatic late submission in their first bout, giving Eblen a blueprint of what went wrong
- Eblen's undefeated professional record outside that PFL loss adds significant weight to his motivation heading into the rematch
- The contrasting styles — van Steenis as a submission threat versus Eblen's high-output striking — set up a tactically rich matchup
- The winner consolidates their standing as the clear face of the PFL middleweight division
