Yet aside from the draft picks being predetermined, as it turned out, Owen basically had the final say anyway, with fighters placed where they would make the most sense in terms of logistics and fanbase.

Not really a “draft,” then. The issue was one of several addressed during an appearance by the GFL exec on The Ariel Helwani Show on Tuesday.

“I guess one of the streams went live early, about five minutes earlier than they should of when they were still kind of testing and kind of going through some different things. So one of the graphics that got shown was theoretically the draft board,” noted Owen, who would suggest that the error actually worked in the league’s favor. “I don’t know if ultimately it was a bad thing, because based on that, we were trending on X, the number one topic in the United States that evening. We trended on Google over the weekend. Was it a blessing in disguise maybe that this got leaked?”

“It wasn’t the plan, but it happened, you sort of deal with it and move forward.”

Asked for his response about the draft being predetermined, Owen replied “Yeah, absolutely. There’s a lot that went into that production of it. The reality is, I consulted with the coaches, the managers, [on] who they wanted on their team. What makes sense based on- we’re stacking the deck, Ariel. That’s the reality of this thing. You said it, everyone said it, we all want to make sure we get the fights we want to see. So given the fact too, we also own and operate all the teams ourselves. So making trades, doing the logical thing to create the match-ups people want to see, we’ll get creative with it.”

To fighters who weren’t picked, or weren’t drafted when (or where) they wanted, “you can blame me,” added Owen. “Ultimately I kind of have final say. We did get all the feedback, we had planned on going live, picks one through 120. The duration that that would have taken was significantly longer than anyone wanted to tune in for.”

“Ultimately we wanted to put the right fighters on the right teams to also create the logical match-ups. ATT fighters wanted to be in Miami, fighters based in California wanted to be on that team, Sao Paulo mostly Brazilians and South Americans.”

Big names and global representation appear to be key attributes the GFL was looking for, rather than simply stacking teams with competitive fighters who could help their city win.

“There was that aspect that came into it too, let’s let logic prevail on how these teams should come to fruition. Also getting the feedback, but we need needle movers. We need fighters that have the biggest fan bases possible. And that was kind of more the determining factor – which athletes are going to generate the most revenue for us, and which fighters are going to be future global superstars. And also brining in athletes from all around the world so we have representation from major countries around the world.”

Later during his appearance on the show, Owen also addressed Rashad Evans stating that he was drafted without his consent. “We had a few athletes that were in the draft based on their managers saying yes, 100% put them in the draft,” Owen explained, adding that a small number had not physically signed their agreements. “We’re dealing with I’d say two or three of the 120 that we’re working through. So we’ll see how that all pans out.”

Among them was Evans, the former UFC light heavyweight champion. Prior to the draft, according to Owen, Evans’s manager had given him the green light to put him in the draft. “So we put him in. Rashad obviously came out afterwards and said ‘hey, I didn’t sign,’ but I think if you look at the history of drafts, are any of those athletes signed before they get drafted to the team? No. Eric Lindros, Stevie Francise, Eli Manning, there’s a lot of examples of things that happen post-draft, and this is just similar format to that.”

The door isn’t closed on Evans fighting for the GFL, according to Darren Owen. While he may be boxing Rampage Jackson in April, Evans doesn’t necessarily need to fight for GFL in April. That’s just when the league launches.

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On Thursday, GFL officials announced all six teams that will take part in its inaugural season, as well as the managers and head coaches associated with each. They include some familiar names, and incorporate MMA hotspots in Brazil and the U.K.

The teams break down as follows:

• Miami, FL – Thiago “Pitbull” Alves, a former UFC title challenger who coaches out of American Top Team, with serve as manager while fellow ATT coach Conan Silveira (father of PFL star Josh Silveira) will work as head coach.
• Sao Paulo, Brazil – Already previously announced as a manager, Lyoto Machida will have André Pederneiras acting as his team’s head coach.
• London, U.K. – UFC and Ultimate Fighter alum Luke Barnatt will manage the London team, with Carl Prince as coach.
• New York, NY – It might be no surprise to see Ray Longo coaching the New York team; a manager will be named later.
• Dubai, UAE – Previously announced as a manager, former UFC heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez will head up the Dubai team, with AKA’s Javier Mendez as coach.
• Los Angeles – In perhaps the biggest surprise, Brazilian Wanderlei Silva will serve as manager of the L.A. team, while Kings MMA’s Rafael Cordeiro serves as coach.

The GFL has also announced that it’s January 24, 2025 draft will stream live, though details of the broadcast have yet to be confirmed. The draft will take place in Phoenix, Arizona.

“This league is built on respect for the sport’s history and a vision for its future,” said Darren Owen, GFL Commissioner, in Thursday’s press release. “Our cities, managers, and coaches reflect the very best of MMA, and our draft will kick off an unforgettable first season.”

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First revealed by GFL Founder Darren Owen on Uncrowned’s The Ariel Helwani Show, the GFL has signed the likes of Junior Dos Santos, Fabricio Werdum, Frank Mir, Greg Hardy, and Andrei Arlovski to its heavyweight division alone. If that sounds like the UFC heavyweight division circa the late-2000s/early 2010s, well, it’s really only missing Cain Velasquez.

Other names announced by the GFL include Wanderlei Silva, Gegard Mousasi, Alexander Gustafsson, Kevin Lee, Thiago Santos, Marlon Moraes, Jeremy Stephens, Lance Palmer, Bubba Jenkins, Hector Lombard, Tyron Woodley, Anthony Pettis and even Rousimar Phalares.

While the initial batch of names might seem a bit long in the tooth, the roster is far from complete. The league has announced a schedule of 15 events from April to August, 2025 and a three-event playoff. A roster of 300 will see 120 names drafted across six teams. 20 fighters per team will be subdivided by 10 weight classes.

Those weight classes, while carrying familiar names, have been modified. Women’s strawweight will allow fighters to come in at 120lbs, and flyweight 130. The light heavyweight limit will be 225lbs, while heavyweight will cap off, as it historically has, at 265lbs.

The league, as was previously reported, intends to have a 50/50 revenue share with fighters. Per Owen, “Athletes get paid either or — whatever is greater — their guaranteed amount or their revenue share percentage. So someone might have a $50,000 guaranteed purse and they earn 1% revenue share, but if there’s $10 million in that revenue pool for that event, then they’re going to receive $100,000 instead of what they were thinking was $50,000.”

Fighter pay will see 8% put towards a retirement fund, and 2% put into health insurance.

The Global Fight League draft date is set for January 24, 2025. In its inaugural season, six cities will have teams competing in the league. None of those locations have been announced.

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