Professional Fighters League (PFL) News

Tom Taylor - December 24, 2020

Former WEC and UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis has explained his decision to sign with the Professional Fighters League (PFL). Pettis last fought at UFC Vegas 17 last weekend, where he picked up a unanimous decision win over Alex Morono at welterweight. That victory marked the final obligation on the former champion’s latest UFC contract.

Adam Martin - December 23, 2020

Former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis has decided to take his talents over to PFL, signing with the promotion as a free agent. Pettis announced on Tuesday that he had parted ways with the UFC and was going to test free agency. Pettis recently mentioned that his brother Sergio Pettis is in Bellator, so many fans and media figured that he might sign there, too. However, Pettis has now joined the likes of former UFC champions Fabricio Werdum and Rory MacDonald in signing with PFL. ESPN’s Ariel Helwani reported the breaking news about Pettis on Wednesday.

Tom Taylor - December 15, 2020

Reigning PFL women’s lightweight champion Kayla Harrison will compete one more time before she closes the door on the year 2020. Harrison, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo, steps into the Titan FC cage this Thursday to face Jozette Cotton. The bout takes place from the Intercontinental Hotel in Miami and streams live on UFC Fight Pass.

Adam Martin - December 9, 2020

The No. 1 pound-for-pound female boxer in the world, Claressa Shields, says that “MMA fans need to bow down and kiss her feet” ahead of her pro debut. Shields, a former Olympic gold medalist in boxing, has been teasing a debut in mixed martial arts for a few years now. Many thought that she would sign with the UFC outright due to her name recognition in boxing, but Shields surprised the MMA world when she decided to sign with PFL, instead. The Flint, Michigan native will make her mixed martial arts debut sometime in 2021 in a non-tournament bout in PFL, and it’s a big deal.

Tom Taylor - December 8, 2020

If there is one thing Clay Collard wants you to remember when he leaves the cage or boxing ring, it is that he gave everything he had. Collard, who will compete in the upcoming Professional Fighters League lightweight regular season in 2021, steps back into the boxing ring for Top Rank Boxing this Saturday night.

Tom Taylor - December 8, 2020

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has shared his initial thoughts on Claressa Shields after their first training sessions together. Shields, a three-division boxing champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, is set to make her MMA debut in the PFL cage in 2021. Ahead of this anticipated debut, Shields has set up camp at JacksonWink MMA in Albuquerque—the training home of many top fighters, including Jones.

Tom Taylor - December 7, 2020

Former two-division UFC champ Conor McGregor has some words of advice for boxing star Claressa Shields, who will transition to MMA under the PFL banner in 2021. Shields, a three-division boxing champ at just 25 years old, will make her MMA debut in the PFL cage in 2021. Ahead of that debut, Shields has been training at JacksonWink MMA alongside former UFC champs Jon Jones and Holly Holm. She’s also received some advice from another former UFC champ in McGregor.

Tom Taylor - December 7, 2020

Three-division boxing champion Claressa Shields has enlisted the help of two former UFC champs as she prepares to transition into mixed martial arts. Shields, widely considered one of the greatest female boxers of all time, recently signed with the Professional Fighters League, where she will begin her MMA journey in 2021.

Tom Taylor - December 2, 2020

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has made 2020 a very tough year for MMA, but 2021 looks like it could much better—particularly for the women’s side of the sport. As the 2021 calendar starts to fill up, a number of female fighters look poised for huge things, from the UFC’s Octagon, to the ONE Championship Circle, to the PFL and Bellator MMA cages.

Adam Martin - December 1, 2020

Former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum explained the secret to fighting into his 40s and still performing at a high level in MMA. Werdum is now 43 years old but he is still winning fights against elite opposition who are younger than him. In his last outing on Fight Island back in July, Werdum picked up a huge upset win when he submitted Alexander Gustafsson. After being left for dead following a decision loss to Aleksei Oleinik at UFC 249 this past May, Werdum showed that he still has plenty of gas left in the tank when he beat Gustafsson.

Adam Martin - November 30, 2020

Claressa Shields, a former Olympic gold medalist in boxing, is making the move to mixed martial arts and surprisingly has signed with PFL. Shields has been teasing a move to MMA for the last few years. In fact, she was a guest of UFC president Dana White at UFC 245 last December in Las Vegas. Many thought that after Amanda Nunes defended the UFC women’s bantamweight title against Germaine de Randamie that night that Shields could potentially be a future opponent. But that fight won’t be happening anytime soon with Shields now in PFL.

Adam Martin - November 26, 2020

PFL lightweight champion Kayla Harrison says she is open to fights against Cris Cyborg and Amanda Nunes in the near future. Harrison is one of the most dominant female fighters in the sport right now, so it’s only natural to think about her fighting the other elite women fighters in the sport. Harrison is coming off of a featherweight win in Invicta FC but plans on moving back to PFL in 2021 to compete in another tournament. After that, Harrison could find herself fighting for some of the other top promotions in the sport including the UFC or Bellator. It’s in those promotions that she can fight the other top talent.

Adam Martin - November 23, 2020

PFL president Ray Sefo says that his organization has no interest in signing former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Silva recently became a free agent when the UFC released him following a knockout loss to Uriah Hall on Halloween. Silva is now 45 years old and he has lost his last three fights, but he has vowed to continue to fight. “The Spider” recently took to social media and exclaimed that he finally feels free after being fully released by the UFC. It seems like Silva will soon be testing the free-agent market and see what is out there for him.

Adam Martin - November 16, 2020

Former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum has decided to take his talents to the Professional Fighters League as he’s signed with PFL. Werdum recently became a free agent after his UFC contract expired following a submission win over Alexander Gustafsson on Fight Island. Despite being 43 years old, Werdum received plenty of interest in free agency and it looked like he was bound to sign with Bellator rematch Fedor Emelianenko. However, Werdum on Monday announced that he has decided to sign with PFL and compete in its 2021 heavyweight tournament. The Brazilian hinted last week that he could sign with PFL, and now it’s official.

Tom Taylor - November 13, 2020

Former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum is now eyeing a spot on the PFL roster after negotiations with Bellator MMA fizzled out. Werdum, who parted ways with the UFC earlier this year, has recently been linked to a rematch with fellow heavyweight legend Fedor Emelianenko after the Bellator MMA banner.

Tom Taylor - November 9, 2020

2019 Professional Fighters League Women’s Lightweight Champion, Kayla Harrison is set to return to action on Friday, November 20 at Invicta 43 where she will square off with heralded Invicta featherweight, Courtney King (4-1) in the evening’s co-main event. Harrison (7-0) is a two-time Olympic gold medalist in Judo (2012 and 2016) and has been dominant since beginning her undefeated mixed martial arts career with the PFL in 2018. “I have been on a mission to show I am the best fighter,” said Harrison, a two-time Olympic Judo gold medalist. “I have been tackling challenges my entire career and this bout at 145-pounds is a new and exciting one for me. I’m looking forward to competing in this new weight class and can’t wait to get back into the PFL cage come April.”

bjpenndotcom - October 23, 2020

Professional Fighters League (PFL) today announced a global partnership with Socios.com, a leading blockchain fintech company in the sports space. This new partnership will see the PFL launch Fan Tokens, digital assets that provide fans with engagement opportunities – including voting rights and the chance to earn exclusive rewards, on blockchain-based fan voting and rewards app Socios.com, the “Official Fan Token Partner of the PFL.”

Tom Taylor - October 20, 2020

The Professional Fighters League (PFL), the first organization to present MMA through a Regular Season, Playoffs and Championship format, today announced that the 2021 PFL Season will begin April 23 on ESPN2 in primetime. The remaining Regular Season events will take place on April 29, May 6, June 10, June 17, and June 25. PFL will begin its 2021 season a month early as the league makes its anticipated return to action. “We’re thrilled to announce an early start date for the 2021 PFL Season and we look forward to building on the positive momentum experienced in a historic first season on ESPN,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray. “In 2021, the PFL will deliver an elevated, immersive, and interactive fan viewing experience incorporating expanded, real-time fighter data and analytics from our proprietary SmartCage technology, behind-the-scenes access, the return of ref cam, and more. Our champions return looking to earn another title, while a fresh crop of exciting new fighters will challenge for the top spot in MMA. Additional contenders will be unveiled in the lead-up to what we believe will be the biggest season in PFL history.”