GFL signs seven more fighters including Shogun Rua and Yoel Romero

The GFL has continued to add to its roster as the promotion has signed seven more veterans.

The GFL announced in a press release that the promotion signed Shogun Rua, Yoel Romero, Chad Mendes, Renan Barao, Douglas Lima, Ovince Saint Preux, and Todd Duffee. All seven fighters will be draft-eligible next week.

Shogun Rua (27-14-1) last fought back in January of 2023 when he was knocked out by Ihor Potieria. The Brazilian is currently on a three-fight losing streak as he dropped a decision to St. Preux and was TKO’d by Paul Craig.

Yoel Romero (16-7) last fought in MMA last February scoring a decision win over Thiago Santos in the PFL vs Bellator card. He did have a boxing match in Dirty Boxing in November scoring a first-round knockout.

GFL also signed former UFC title challenger Chad Mendes. Mendes went 18-5 in MMA and last fought in 2018 when he was TKO’d by Alexander Volkanovski. He has had two BKFC fights since then, going 1-1.

Along with those three, the GFL added former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao. The Brazilian is 36-10 and one NC and is riding a six-fight losing streak. His last fight came in October of 2023 where he dropped a split decision to Walter Zamora in Kuwait.

Lima, meanwhile, is a former Bellator champion and last fought in September, when he dropped a decision to Aaron Jeffery.

The final two fighters the GFL signed were Saint Preux and Duffee. St. Preux is 27-18 and coming off a submission loss to Ryan Spann. Duffee, meanwhile, is 9-4 and one NC and coming off a TKO loss to Phil de Fries in February of 2023.

GFL announces coaches and locations for teams

Along with the seven signings, the GFL also announced the host cities and coaches for the inaugural season, which are as follows:

Los Angeles

Manager: Wanderlei Silva

Coach: Rafael Cordeiro

New York

Manager: TBD

Coach: Ray Longo

Miami

Manager: Thiago Alves

Coach: Conan Silveira

Sao Paulo

Manager: Lyoto Machida

Coach: Andre Pederneiras

London

Manager: Luke Barnatt

Coach: Carl Prince

Dubai

Manager: Cain Velasquez

Coach: Javier Mendez

The GFL is expected to launch in April.