Professional Fighters League (PFL) News

Tom Taylor - December 18, 2019

Rory MacDonald has parted ways with Bellator MMA. After a period of free agency, the former Bellator welterweight champion has not signed a new deal with the promotion, and instead inked a contract with the Professional Fighters League (PFL).

Cole Shelton - November 13, 2019

Jake Shields is keeping his options open. The 40-year-old has not fought since October 2018 at PFL 10 when he lost by TKO to Ray Cooper III for the second time in the year. He wanted to try out the tournament format, but at his age, he said he didn’t know if he wanted to fight so often to do it again.

Adam Martin - November 1, 2019

The finals for all six PFL 2019 tournaments have been officially set for the promotion’s finale, which takes place on New Year’s Eve in New York City. PFL 2019: Week 10 takes place on December 31 at Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The event will air live on ESPN.

Mike Pendleton - October 16, 2019

Following an incident that took place at a recent Professional Fighters League event earlier this month, the PFL has requested that manager Ali Abdelaziz not attend any events moving forward. Abdelaziz was involved in an altercation with another manager, Abe Kawa, in which Las Vegas Police reported that Abdelaziz struck Kawa in the face with a closed fist. After the police opened up an investigation to the incident, PFL has decided to keep Abdelaziz away from events for the immediate future until the case is resolved. As first reported by Brett Okamoto of ESPN, the PFL has requested that Abdelaziz does not attend any PFL events.

Adam Martin - August 7, 2019

PFL women’s lightweight contender Kayla Harrison is fighting with so much confidence these days. The Olympic gold medalist judoka is a perfect 5-0 in MMA and has gone public in calling for a fight against Cris Cyborg. Now, she is on record comparing herself to arguably the best fighter in the sport, Khabib Nurmagomedov. Harrison was recently interviewed by ESPN and asked who she would compare herself to. She said she believes she’s most like “The Eagle.”

Mike Heck - August 6, 2019

Kayla Harrison is not intimidated by Cris Cyborg, or the thought that the former UFC women’s featherweight champion may grace the Professional Fighters League with her presence. As a matter of fact, Harrison looks to welcome that challenge with open arms.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 1, 2019

Kayla Harrison is considered to be the most popular star in PFL and Sarah Kaufman believes there is some special treatment going on. Harrison is a judo Olympic gold medalist, who has made the transition to mixed martial arts. She is 4-0 in her young professional mixed martial arts career. Harrison will go one-on-one with Morgan Frier at PFL 4 Season 2 on July 11, while Kaufman takes on Roberta Samad.

Cole Shelton - May 23, 2019

UFC veteran Jeremy Kennedy is set to make his PFL debut tonight when he takes on Luis Rafael after his initial opponent was pulled for missing weight. However, the opponent change isn’t impacting Kennedy, who is no doubt ready to fight and win all the same. This will be Kennedy’s first time competing in a tournament format. The 26-year-old is excited about the matchmaking integrity the tournament format ensures. He can let his fighting do the talking.

Adam Martin - May 22, 2019

Heavyweight Josh Copeland is no longer part of the PFL roster. According to a report from TMZ, Copeland on Tuesday pleaded guilty in Colorado to felony second and third-degree assault in a domestic violence incident in which he allegedly struck his wife in the face during an argument. A previous TMZ report indicated police were called to the Copeland residence on February 2 when his wife told officers that her husband punched her in the face, leading to bruising and bleeding, which the officers noted. Copeland was arrested at the scene, and later posted bond.

Tom Taylor - May 10, 2019

On Thursday night, the Professional Fighters League (PFL) returned to our screens with the first instalment of its anticipated season. This PFL 1 card featured a number of high-profile bouts in the compelling PFL women’s lightweight and men’s welterweight divisions. In the PFL 1 main event, promotional golden child Kayla Harrison picked up the biggest victory of her career, defeating the experienced Larissa Pachecho via unanimous decision, picking up three points in the process.

Drake Riggs - May 7, 2019

When it comes to Judo players in MMA, there is no one better right now than PFL lightweight, Kayla Harrison. The undefeated 3-0 American Top Team product is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and her dominance has so far carried over to the MMA world with great effect.

Drake Riggs - April 3, 2019

On February 26, 2010, Sarah Kaufman became the first ever Strikeforce bantamweight champion when she defeated Takayo Hashi via unanimous decision. The champion would defend her title once against future top flyweight, Roxanne Modafferi before dropping it to Dutch pioneer, Marloes Coenen.

Nolan King - March 21, 2019

The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is gearing up for its sophomore season, loading up its roster with faces both new and old. On Thursday afternoon, PFL announced its second batch of participants who will be entering the 2019 tournament via ESPN  as well as a promotional video.

Tom Taylor - March 8, 2019

The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has officially announced the roster for its women’s lightweight division. The league announced this news on its official website early on Friday afternoon.

Tom Taylor - February 25, 2019

The UFC now has some company on ESPN, as the Professional Fighters League (PFL) has inked a two-year deal with the network. This news was first reported by Farah Hannoun on Twitter and subsequently confirmed by PFL CEO Peter Murray on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on Monday afternoon.

Tom Taylor - February 12, 2019

The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has indefinitely suspended heavyweight fighter Josh Copeland following his recent arrest, which stemmed from a domestic violence incident in early February. The PFL issued a statement on the Josh Copeland situation on Monday evening (via MMA Fighting).

Tom Taylor - January 28, 2019

On New Years, the Professional Fighters League (PFL) crowned the winners of its first-ever season. The winners in each division were handed world title belts and million-dollar checks. Yet in the opinion of Jon Fitch, who held the welterweight title when the PFL was still called World Series of Fighting, those checks might never clear. “I think those guys who won the tournament are going to be thinking about, ‘What happened to my million?” Fitch said backstage at Bellator 214 (via MMAjunkie). “I don’t have any faith that those guys are going to get paid their full amount.”

Tom Taylor - January 17, 2019

Last night, new UFC featherweight champ Amanda Nunes stated — apparently jokingly — that she is done with the featherweight division. Nunes followed this announcement by suggesting that Cris Cyborg, the woman she knocked out to win the UFC featherweight belt, fight lightweight prospect Kayla Harrison. Sorry Cristiane but I’m done with 145. My Goal was to be a double champ. But, now I can help you build the division. I got someone for you @Judo_Kayla is a true 145er