Top 5: Check out Costello & Van Steenis' crushing victory over the best in MMA!

Costello van Steenis took the better-late-than-never philosophy to the extreme. “The Spaniard” laid claim to the inaugural Professional Fighters League middleweight championship when he put the previously unbeaten Johnny Eblen to sleep with a rear-naked choke in the fifth round of their PFL Champions Series 2 main event on July 19, 2025 at GrandWest Arena in Cape Town, South Africa. Van Steenis squeezed the American into another dimension 4:51 into Round 5.

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Eblen asserted himself across the first 15 minutes with clinches, takedowns and stifling top control, though his efforts put a noticeable strain on his gas tank. Van Steenis started to turn the tide in the fourth round, where he leaned into his jab—sometimes two or three at a time—and paired it leg kicks, teeps to the midsection, knees to the body and occasional elbow strikes. Eblen retreated to his corner between periods bleeding from multiple cuts and visibly fatigued.

The American Top Team rep executed a pair of takedowns in Round 5 but failed to keep his counterpart bottled up when it mattered most. Van Steenis initiated a late scramble, wheeled behind the former University of Missouri wrestler, secured his position with hooks and weaved his arms in place for the choke. Though time was on Eblen’s side, he lost consciousness with just nine seconds remaining on the clock.