Professional Fighters League acquires Bellator to form global MMA powerhouse

NEW YORK: Professional Fighters League has announced it has completed the acquisition of Bellator from Paramount Global, creating a global powerhouse in mixed martial arts and accelerating the combined company to become the industry co-leader.

PFL has acquired a significant number of top fighters through the Bellator acquisition, and its combined fighter roster is now equal in stature to UFC.

Donn Davis, PFL founder and chairman, said: “PFL is now a global powerhouse in MMA. Our Bellator acquisition turbocharges PFL’s mission to innovate the sport and become the industry co-leader.”

PFL and UFC both showcase rosters that are 30 percent comprised of fighters who are top 25 independently world-ranked in their weight-classes. In addition, PFL + Bellator now has the best roster of women’s fighters in the world.

All newly acquired Bellator fighters will become part of the PFL platform and available to compete in PFL fight franchises.

PFL will continue the Bellator brand, and Bellator will be the one-off event product from PFL.

PFL will launch a reimagined Bellator product in 2024 – the Bellator International Champions Series, which will consist of eight fight events each year hosted in major cities around the world, and each Bellator event will feature two compelling co-main fights competing for championship belts.

Bellator becomes one of five live fight franchises of the PFL alongside PFL League Season, PFL PPV Super Fights, PFL Challenger Series, and PFL International Leagues. Overall, the company can now produce a year-round calendar of live fight content with 30 premium MMA events per year.

PFL also plans to stage a landmark event in 2024 – PFL Champions vs. Bellator Champions, featuring the champions of each