Jake Paul's MVP, PFL team up in 'landmark' combat sports merger - ESPN

Jake Paul and MVP Promotions have taken another landmark step into MMA, as the company announced it is merging with the PFL on Thursday.

The move will shift the PFL and its operations under the MVP Promotions umbrella, forming one combat sports company to include boxing and MMA.

MVP broke into the MMA scene in May, with its first event featuring the return of Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano on Netflix. Paul has repeatedly promised to shake up the industry, which has long been dominated by the UFC. He has also teased his eventual competitive debut in professional MMA.

«We started MVP to disrupt a broken model,» Paul said in a news release. «We wanted to give fighters fair pay and a bigger, modernized stage to become global superstars. Joining forces with PFL accelerates that vision by a decade. I look forward to putting my entire promotional muscle into our new company, returning to the boxing ring and making my MVP MMA debut.»

MVP Promotions is led by Paul and co-founder Nakisa Bidarian. PFL head John Martin, who joined the company in 2025, will continue to operate as CEO and board member.

Since its launch in 2018, the PFL has established itself as home to the best MMA talent in the world outside the UFC — particularly after its acquisition of Bellator MMA in 2023. It has historically searched for ways to draw more attention to the league, however, including multiple revamps of season and tournament formats. The merger will combine MVP's marketing prowess with a PFL roster that includes names such as Dakota Ditcheva, Usman Nurmagomedov, AJ McKee and Johnny Eblen.

«Over the past seven years, PFL has built the world's No. 2 global MMA company, assembling one of the sport's most elite fighter rosters while creating a