The Professional Fighter’s League announced that they have added a whopping twenty new athletes to their roster ahead of their summer series that will span across six events between June and August. The list features fighters from across the globe with veterans who have experience in Dana White’s Contender Series, Cage Warriors, and more.

Lors de son dernier combat, il s’était fait étrangler par Javid Basharat (🇦🇫) après l’avoir traité de « terroriste » à la pesée. pic.twitter.com/jzVLJ3ux6U

— MMA TIME (@MMA__TIME) November 23, 2023

Amongst the notables is bantamweight Javid Basharat, the brother of undefeated UFC contender Farid Basharat. Basharat is a UFC veteran himself who left the promotion after a 3-2-1 run that saw him enter the company through DWCS in 2021 where he won a contract in his second appearance on the program. Recently, Basharat was not re-signed following a victory over new signee Gianni Vazquez in February. Prior to that, “The Snow Leopard” had lost to longtime veteran Ricky Simon and current top contender Aiemann Zahabi.

Another major signing for the company comes in the form of Leon Hill of Ireland. The 30 year-old welterweight boasts a 10-2 record and enters the PFL on a four fight win-streak. “The Professional” has been building experience recently under the Cage Warriors banner where his last seven fights have been with the company. He last fought in February where he scored a second round finish.

The women’s divisions will also be adding depth as it was announced that they had also signed Combate Global veteran Lucero “Loba” Acosta. The Mexican prospect with a 6-2 developed as a professional from the ground up by Combate Global as she fought her lone amateur fight with the company back in 2019 and all her subsequent fights as a pro came under the banner. Outside of the cage, Acosta brings a strong online presence with 480k followers on Instagram. Acosta last fought in April of 2025.

No bouts for the new signees have ben announced yet but it is expected that they will come soon as more events continue to be made official in the coming months.

The complete list of signees is as follows:

• Leon “The Hitman” Hill (10-2), Ireland, Welterweight, 30yo
• Lucero “La Loba” Acosta (6-2), Mexico, Flyweight, 31yo
• Moustapha Diakhaté (5-0-1), Senegal/Belgium, Light Heavyweight, 25yo
• Valeria “Foxy” Ramirez (10-1), Argentina, Strawweight, 26yo
• Cassio Barao (10-1-1), Brazil, Lightweight, 30yo
• Javid “The Snow Leopard” Basharat (15-2-0, 1 NC), Afghanistan/England, Bantamweight, 30yo
• Roland “The Dream” Dunlap (7-0), Wisconsin U.S., Light Heavyweight, 33yo
• Avery Guidebeck (3-0), Iowa U.S., Lightweight, 19yo
• Ilian “The Gorilla” Bouafia (8-1), France, Middleweight, 29yo
• Trukon “The Carolina Gamedog” Carson (6-1), North Carolina U.S, Welterweight, 
• Brandon “Snatch” Brachet (9-1), France, Lightweight, 21yo
• “Mad” Max Metzgar (6-0), Illinois U.S., Lightweight, 29yo
• Daniel “Soncora” Marcos (18-1, 1 NC), Peru, Bantamweight, 33yo
• Hasan Mezhiev (14-0), Latvia, Heavyweight, 33yo
• Jonathan “War Hawk” Piersma (12-3), New York U.S., Welterweight, 30yo
• Marina “Armata” Merchuk (7-2), Russia, Strawweight, 30yo
• Felipe “Capanema” Oliveira (8-1), Brazil, Featherweight, 22yo
• Zacharia “Zach” Nishimwe (4-0), Burundi, Light Heavyweight, 24yo

The post PFL Announces 18 New Signees Ahead of Summer Series appeared first on Cageside Press.

In a press release issued Tuesday morning, the league’s newly installed CEO, John Martin, stated the rankings were both “transparent and credible.”

“These rankings provide a clear, objective snapshot of where each PFL division stands,” Martin was quoted as saying. “By partnering with an independent data organization like Combat Registry, we’re giving fans and our athletes a transparent and credible rankings system that reflects performance inside the PFL cage.”

Combat Registry will oversee vote collection, tabulation, and publication, and reportedly did so for the now defunct Bellator MMA, who were purchased and absorbed by the PFL a couple of years back. Voting will be done by “a panel of MMA journalists and industry experts”

The official rankings make their debut just in time for the upcoming PFL: Road to Dubai card, and can be found below.

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In a deal announced Wednesday, league officials revealed that Vice will air a total of ten Professional Fighters League events, starting with two this December plus another eight in 2026.

In addition, 50 hours worth of fights from the PFL’s fight library will be made available to Vice TV subscribers via On Demand.

December’s Vice TV cards will be comprised of the PFL MENA Championships on December 5 from Saudi Arabia and the PFL Africa Championships on December 20 from Benin, West Africa. Those regional events were previously free for fight fans stateside using the PFL App.

“VICE TV audiences come to us for the high-octane, provocative and compelling content they can’t find anywhere else, and as we continue enhance our live sports slate, we’re proud to welcome Professional Fighter’s League to our line-up and give our viewers and PFL fans across the US access to these international fights for the first time on television,” VICE TV President Peter Gaffney was quoted as saying in Wednesday’s press release.

“Partnering with VICE TV represents an exciting new chapter for the Professional Fighters League,” stated Professional Fighters League CEO John Martin in that same release. “VICE’s unique storytelling voice, passionate sports audience, and broad linear reach make them the ideal partner to showcase the next generation of global MMA. Together, we’re bringing the action, culture, and energy of PFL MENA and PFL Africa to millions of fans across the U.S., while continuing to build the sport’s worldwide momentum through live events and exclusive programming.”

The Professional Fighters League currently airs its tournament events on ESPN/ESPN+, while Champions Series cards have historically been hosted on HBO MAX.

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The PFL is expanding the reach in the Middle East and Africa with a new streaming partner in that region.  The promotion announced on Tuesday that they had signed a multi-year agreement with the subscription video on-demand service Starzplay.

The announcement comes ahead of the premiere of the PFL World Tournament which will kick off on April 3 and be the first event to air on the service.  Notably, Starzplay will air all events under the PFL umbrella including PFL Europe, Champions Series, PFL MENA, and PFL Africa.  Last year, the promotion debuted the PFL MENA (Middle East and North Africa) season and crowned winners on the undercard of the World Championships event in November.  Starzplay will allow fans in the region to watch their league on their service.

“We are very excited to partner with STARZPLAY, the leading streaming platform in the MENA region, to bring world-class MMA action to millions of passionate fight fans. This multi-year partnership marks a significant milestone in our mission to expand the PFL’s global footprint and deliver premium combat sports content to audiences worldwide,” PFL CEO Pete Murray said about the deal. “The Middle East is a key market for the PFL and now, fight fans across the region can watch and support their favorite MENA fighters in all PFL events, including the electrifying kickoff of PFL MENA Season 2 in Jeddah this May 9.”

The PFL will begin their 2025 world tournament with four events across five weeks in Orlando, Florida starting on April 3, 2025.

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After losing a razor close decision to Ramazan Kuramagomedov in Ireland last year, Jackson said he was “promised” a championship rematch that he never received.

The Jamaican born contender he stated that he had to solve his own visa problems to even travel to Ireland and defend his title. He expressed frustration with the promotion and was confused why he never got a second chance at Bellator gold.

Jackson headlines PFL’s opening round event April 3rd in Orlando, Florida. Jason took time out of his busy schedule to talk with me last week, here’s how the conversation unfolded.

BC: Some Exciting news you’ll be facing another former Bellator Champion in Andrey Koreshkov, you guys fought in the same promotion for a while how familiar are you with his game?

JJ: I’ve seen a few of his fights and the guy is pretty good at spinning attacks. He has heart and he’s gonna come to fight. That’s what I love, that’s what is going to challenge me.

BC: Is he someone you and your team have game planned for in the past?

JJ: For sure, his name has popped up on my radar a few times, so the time has finally when we have to meet. I believe that I am the better fighter.

BC: We saw that you recently went back to Jamaica, helping teach and coach the next generation of fighters over there. How important was that to you?

JJ: Hey it was everything I ever wanted, going back and kinda blessing my community and bring back some of the skills that I accumulated here in America the land of opportunity. Giving the next kid an opportunity to travel with martial arts and pass it down to the next generation because I don’t want to die with the skills that I have.

When I asked the former Bellator champion about his title loss to Ramazan Kuramagomedov in Ireland, he stated that “I’m surprised that I’m not fighting him for the belt, that’s what I was told. Based on the favor’s that I did for Bellator.”

BC: Oh, so you thought that you were going to get a championship rematch this year instead of entering into the tournament?

JJ: Exactly, Exactly. That’s what I was told.

BC: Did you ever get a reason as to why that was the direction that they went in?

JJ: You know I was promised things were going to go according to plan. Like I said I kinda felt like I was doing a favor actually going out there after them making a mistake with my VISA. They didn’t get me it and I still found a way to get it done. I got out there late, still made weight, still fulfilled my obligations and I was told you know for you doing that and saving the show, definitely.

I was certainly not expecting this response from the former champion, but we went on to discuss his best memories in Bellator and much more in this interview.

You can catch Jason Jackson in action April 3rd from Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. The PFL world tournament opening round will be streamed on ESPN+.

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The Professional Fighters League (PFL) 2025 tournament doesn’t begin for almost a month but the promotion is already announcing plans for later in the year with dates and venues for the semifinals.

The promotion announced that the first semifinal event will take place on June 12 at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.  The second semifinal event will take place at the INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas  on June 20 and the final event will take place at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois on June 27.

The announcements comes on the heels of the announcement of a four week residency at Universal Studios Florida where all the weight classes will compete in the first round of the tournament with dates on April 3, April 11, April 18, and May 1 in Orlando.  The run is similar to previous years where the promotion would stay in one market for several weeks at a time.  The promotion also recently announced their first PFL Europe event of the year for Belfast, Ireland which will be headlined by Irish star Paul Hughes.

The PFL will announce the tournament brackets on Tuesday evening which will determine how the matchups (barring injury or other factors) could play out the rest of the year.  The 2025 tournament will be begin with the welterweights and featherweights in action on April 3.

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PFL co-founder Donn Davis has made the rounds in the media comparing PFL to the UFC. From comparing PFL’s numbers to the UFC to poking at White for not wanting to make a super fight between Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou, Davis has not stopped speaking about the UFC.

“The PFL should keep the UFC out of their mouth. They can’t even deal with Power Slap. Power Slap destroys PFL,” White told reporters at his post-Power Slap press conference.

White showed up with some stats to support his statements making most think that he knew the question was coming.

“First of all let’s start with followers. Power Slap has 19.2 million followers. PFL has 10 (million). Video views. PFL fight week did 326 million. Power Slap 8 did 690 million. PFL fight week Instagram views 76 million,” he said.

PFL fight week having 76 million views was fight week and the aftermath and Power Slap 9 did 68 million just the week of the event according to White.

PFL hosted soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and made sure to put him front-and-center on as many cameras as possible. White noticed.

“PFL’s Instagram reel with Francis and Ronaldo did 14 million views. Power Slap 9’s Instagram reel with Contender Isaiah had 22 million views,” he said.

 

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White switched gears to the UFC.

“UFC Vegas 84 at the APEX beat them. I understand and I love the stuff that he said. He sounds like Kamala (Harris). Talks a lot, but says nothing,” he said.

“I would hate to be one of that guy’s investors.”

White wasn’t done as he looked to put the nail in the coffin on his verbal assault of Davis.

“I don’t watch MMA. I’ve worked seven years haven’t taken a vacation. You should probably take a vacation. You’re out of your f*cking mind,” he said mocking Davis saying he doesn’t watch MMA.

“He doesn’t beat Power Slap in revenue, he doesn’t beat Power Slap in ticket sales, he doesn’t beat Power Slap in sponsorship. He doesn’t beat Power Slap in anything let alone the UFC.”

Dana White is likely not done firing back at Davis.

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That’s what the UFC boss said on Thursday following the latest Power Slap event in Abu Dhabi.

“Francis is all about the money. Francis left because he knew that if he fought Jon Jones and didn’t win it would hurt his chances of making the money that he wanted to make,” White told reporters

“Realistically his deal was bigger here. His deal was bigger here if he stayed in the UFC. They can deny it all they want. Why the f*ck would I lie? It doesn’t matter to me one way or the other.”

Ngannou (18-3) left the UFC after unifying his heavyweight title with Cyril Gane’s interim belt. He ended up signing a deal with the PFL which included an open door for him to go into boxing. His two-fight boxing run saw him drop fights against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.

He made his MMA return last weekend at PFL Super Fights: Battle Of The Giants where he defeated Renan Ferreira via R1 KO. He may not have made it that far if White had his way back in 2018.

“I was going to cut Francis when he lost two in a row. I was going to cut him. Somebody around here begged me not to do it. There’s a much deeper story to this whole thing and he would have made more money if he stayed with the UFC,” he said.

“He didn’t want to fight Jon Jones, that’s a fact, and we’re moving on.”

Moving on with a three-way heavyweight title picture with current champ Jones, former champ Stipe Moicic, and current interim champ Tom Aspinall.

“Everybody loves Tom Aspinall and wants to see Jones and Aspinall, or Stipe and Aspinall,” he said.

 

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The return of lineal UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou to mixed martial arts is just under a month away and his new promotion, the PFL, unveiled the complete fight card on Thursday morning for the event taking place on October 19 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟: Your Battle Of The Giants Fight Card is set 🔐

The countdown to impact is 𝙊𝙉 ⏳💥#PFLSuperFights | #BraceForImpact | Oct 19th pic.twitter.com/npBUbpv6Bb

— PFL (@PFLMMA) September 26, 2024

Leading the recently announced bouts is a featherweight contest between Husein Kadimagomaev (11-1) from Switzerland against Zafar Mohsen (13-4) of Germany who will be rounding out the pay-per-view portion of the card.  Kadimagomaev has built a strong record overseas where he has two appearances under the BRAVE banner and has trained with current UFC middleweight star Khamzat Chimaev.  Mohsen shares a similar path and enters the bout having finished his last three opponents.

Kadimagomaev and Mohsen join a pay-per-view lineup of pivotal bouts that includes the high stakes co-main event between reigning Bellator champion Cris Cyborg against two-time PFL tournament champion Larissa Pacheco, the middleweight rematch between Bellator champion Johnny Eblen and Fabian Edwards, and a lightweight bout between former Bellator champion AJ McKee and former Cage Warriors champion Paul Hughes.

Leading preliminary action will be former Bellator bantamweight champion Raufeon Stots who takes on Marcos Breno.  Stots is looking to continue building momentum back toward the title after notching his second victory over Danny Sabatello earlier this year.  Brazil’s Breno will be making his second appearance for the Bellator brand and first under the new iteration run by the PFL.  Breno has a previous fight with LFA but has been relatively inactive with only four fights in the past three years.  The two were previously targeted for a fight at the Bellator event earlier this month before it was scratched from the card.

The rest of preliminary card bouts that were announced will see up-and-coming talent from the Middle East and Europe in action with lightweight Makkasharip (15-4) taking on Derek Sanders (9-4), two featherweight bouts Ibragim Ibragimov (7-0) vs Nacho Campos (5-0) and Youssef Al Housani (4-1) vs Taha Bendaoud (3-0), and a middleweight fight Mostafa Nada (9-3) vs Ahmed Sami (11-4-0-1).

The event is set to take place in Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and will be broadcast on pay-per-view in the United States.

The Full Battle of Giants: Brace for Impact Fight Card:

Heavyweight Main Event: Francis Ngannou (17-3) vs. Renan Ferreira (13-3, 3 NC)
Women’s Featherweight Co-Main Event: Cris “Cyborg” (27-2) vs. Larissa Pacheco (23-4)
Bellator Middleweight World Title Fight: Johnny Eblen (15-0) vs. Fabian Edwards (13-3)
Featherweight Main Card Bout: Husein Kadimagomaev (11-1-0, 1 NC) vs Zafar Mohsen (13-4)
Lightweight Main Card Bout: AJ McKee (22-1) vs. Paul Hughes (12-1)

Bantamweight Early Card Bout: Raufeon Stots (20-2) vs Marcos Breno (15-3)
Lightweight Early Card Bout: Makkasharip Zaynukov (15-4) vs Dedrek Sanders (9-4)
Featherweight Early Card Bout: Ibragim Ibragimov (7-0) vs Nacho Campos (5-0)
Middleweight Early Card Bout: Mostafa Nada (9-3) vs Ahmed Sami (11-4-0, 1 NC)
Featherweight Early Card Bout: Youssef Al Housani (4-1) vs Taha Bendaoud (3-0)

The post Full Ngannou vs. Ferreira Card Revealed for October 19 PPV appeared first on Cageside Press.

USADA made the announcement on Wednesday.

Ivanov (19-7) tested positive for an anabolic agent on an out-of-competition test taken on March 28, 2024, per USADA officials. Officials cited Ivanov’s cooperation for the reduced sanction which began on March 28.

He will be eligible to compete in January 2026.

Ivanov made his PFL debut in April where he dropped a decision to Sergey Bilostenniy at PFL 1: 2024 Regular Season. He signed with PFL following an 8-fight run with the UFC where he put together a record of 3-5.

During his time with the UFC he earned victories over Ben Rothwell, Tai Tuivasa, and Marcos Rogerio de Lima. Other names he fought include former heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos, Derrick Lewis, and Marcin Tybura.

This is not his first stint with PFL, formerly known as the World Series of Fighting (WSOF). He fought for WSOF from 2015 to 2017. Prior to that he fought for Bellator 5 times including a loss to Alexander Volkov and a win over Lavar Johnson both UFC veterans.

PFL has not announced whether Ivanov will remain on the roster, but with a 22-month suspension it’s tough to see him continuing under their banner.

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