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This feature first appeared on The Bloody Elbow Substack.
It struck me recently that, all things considered, MMA promotions buying up their competition has been largely limited to the UFC. Sure, Strikeforce bought up EliteXC back in the day, but only after the promotion had already gone belly up. When it comes to companies acquiring their rivals in the combat sports space, the UFC is far and away an industry leader.
That makes the PFL’s purchase of Bellator feel like an especially interesting moment in history; a truly big risk taken by a promotion trying to make significant moves in a space that is utterly dominated by one company all on its own. With that lens, however, it also means that the PFL is under a lot of pressure to get better. If they acquired all this talent just to deliver another couple of years like they’ve done in the past, it’s going to feel like a real failure to follow through.
Ambitious booking, complete nonsense at the PFL season finale
Stacking so many of them on one night and asking fans to pony up even an only slightly hefty price tag to watch is a constant recipe for disaster. It doesn’t help the PFL at all either, that what fans are mostly seeing lately are former UFC washouts they used to watch compete for free, now running amok against the JV squad.
Derek Brunson, Olivier Aubin-Mercier, Impa Kasanganay, Larissa Pacheco? Is this a PFL PPV in 2023, or a set of UFC prelims in 2019?
Will PFL 2024 feature Francis Ngannou, Jake Paul & Amanda Serrano?
What 2024 will look like for the PFL remains to be seen. Founder Donn Davis suggested that any roster expansion due to the acquisition of Bellator talent likely wouldn’t come until 2025. But we should be looking at the birth of the ‘Superfight Series’ next year, with PPV cards featuring the likes of Jake Paul, Francis Ngannou, and Amanda Serrano.
Only problem there is, as of yet, none of theose people have anyone to fight. Heavyweight MMA is something of a wasteland outside of the Octagon, and Jake Pauls’ attempts to lure Nate Diaz into a PFL contract have gone absolutely nowhere. Is Amanda Serrano an MMA draw, even with the right opponent? There are more questions about the viability of any PFL PPV than there are answers.
When this promotion was just another mid-tier little guy, their season format was something of an endearing counterpoint to the UFC’s juggernaut of same-y ‘people fighting’ cards. But if they’re going to become a real player going forward then they have to find something more senseable to deliver PPV’s people want to see. The season format, if they absolutely need to keep it, has to take a back seat to delivering entertaining big fights.
It’s clear the PFL knows this, or they wouldn’t be trying to bring in all the talent and changes that they’re looking to make. It remains to be seen, however, if they can actually pull it off. No other MMA promoter in history has been able to solve the PPV problem outside the UFC. The PFL is poised to try, but they’ve set themselves one hell of a task.
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