A longtime training partner of Gegard Mousasi, van Steenis built his name in Bellator where he went 7-2 prior to PFL's merger. A 48-second head kick in his PFL debut earned him a crack at Eblen, who had never lost prior to Saturday's bout.

Costello van Steenis shocks MMA world, submits undefeated Johnny Eblen at PFL Africa to become new PFL middleweight champion.

Van Steenis became the new PFL middleweight champion when he locked in a rear-naked choke on Johnny Eblen and earned the submission with just nine seconds left in the five-round bout. The loss was the first in 17 bouts for Eblen.