After he fell short of the mark in the 2025
Professional Fighters League World Tournament middleweight
final, Dalton
Rosta seeks new opportunities amid the company’s changed
landscape.
The
American Top Team standout will look to get back in the win
column when he meets Impa
Kasanganay in the
PFL Pittsburgh co-main event on Saturday at the UMPC Events
Center, not far from where he was born and raised in western
Pennsylvania. Both men are ranked near the top of the middleweight
division. One of the more polarizing competitors on the PFL roster,
Rosta went on a run to remember in 2025, inside and outside the
SmartCage. While a Fabian
Edwards head kick stopped him in his tracks, he has a chance to
climb right back into contention.
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“I’ve got a hell of an opponent in front of me in Impa Kasanganay,
and it’s going to be a good fight,” Rosta told Sherdog.com. “I’m
expecting him to come out and bring it. I plan on just being ready
for everything that he has and going out and putting on a show
that’ll show I’m a better fighter.”
Although he had originally been slated to return in Dubai, United
Arab Emirates, Rosta revels in how the situation played out. “I get to fight in front of my home fans, friends and family that
haven’t had the opportunity to travel and watch me fight,” he said.
“I know the energy is going to be great in the arena. I know
everybody is going to show up, and I’m going to put on a show for
everybody. It’s going to be something to remember, for sure.”
With current middleweight champion Costello
van Steenis having successfully retained his title against the
aforementioned Edwards on March 20, the stakes could not be
clearer. Either the Rosta-Kasanganay winner or the victor of the
Johnny
Eblen–Bryan
Battle main event figures to have an inside track as the next
No. 1 contender at 185 pounds.
Opportunity knocks
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Rosta said. “I’m in my hometown
fighting a very tough opponent who is a former champion, and it’s
starting off the same way as last year. I drew a former champion in
the first round of the tournament last year, and now this year, I’m
starting off with a former champion. He’s actually ranked ahead of
me in the rankings. What better way to show that I’m the guy than
to beat the No. 3-ranked guy?”
Rosta supports the PFL’s highly publicized change in format, as it
moved away from the tournament-based system that once defined it.
He admits he appreciates not having to endure multiple weight cuts
in a matter of weeks.
“I’m not going to lie,” Rosta said. “I would’ve liked to do the
tournament just for the bonus. It’s always nice to have more money,
but I do like the format going forward. I don’t have to worry about
weight cuts so close together, because I was starting to struggle
with those. Now, it’s all about rankings. I’m No. 5. [If] I beat
Impa, who is No. 3, the only people that are above him are Johnny
and Fabian. I’m just going to let things play out, and I know no
matter what, I’ll get the opportunities that I want to get.”
Rosta hopes to soon reclaim some of the shine on his star.
“In 2025, I said I was the best middleweight on the planet,” he
said. “I f—ed up in my last fight, but this year, I plan on
picking up right where I left off, and this year, I’m going to show
everybody that. I still believe it, and now it’s time to make
everybody else believe it.”