Global Fight League

Last updated
Global Fight League
Sport Mixed martial arts
Founder
  • Darren Owen (co-founder and co-owner) [1] [2]
  • Arun Parimi (co-founder and COO) [3]
  • Scott Parker (CMO) [3]
  • Jeffrey Pollack (senior advisor) [3]
Owner(s)Global Fight League
Country United States
Official website mmagfl.com

The Global Fight League (GFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by Darren Owen and Arun Parimi in 2024 and will be launched in April 2025, [4] The league will have a draft that will launch the promotion on Jan. 24, 2025 and its first season is set to begin in April 2025 where teams will be city-based. [5] [6] GFL’s fighter-centric money hemorrhaging model is expected to include health and injury insurance, a structured retirement fund and a 50% event-specific revenue share with the fighters. [7]

Contents

The GFL will put on fights across ten weight-divisions, which differ from traditional weight classes: Women's strawweight (120 pounds), women's flyweight (130), women's bantamweight (140), men's bantamweight (145), featherweight (155), lightweight (165), welterweight (180), middleweight (200), light heavyweight (225) and heavyweight (265). [8] GFL is expected to carry a 300-fighter roster where 120 athletes will get drafted across six teams, composed of 20 fighters, two representatives each across 10 weight classes. [9] A scoring system is set for the bouts where fighters will earn four points for a finish, three for a decision win, two for a draw, one for a decision loss and zero for a defeat via finish. The points will contribute to each team's total score. [10]

On December 11, 2024 it was announced that GFL had signed Ultimate Fighting Championship former title holders: Tyron Woodley, Fabrício Werdum, Anthony Pettis, Junior dos Santos, Luke Rockhold, Frank Mir, Andrei Arlovski, and Benson Henderson, while Marlon Moraes, Wanderlei Silva, Gegard Mousasi, Rafael Carvalho, Lance Palmer, and Will Brooks were champions in other major organizations such as Bellator and World Series of Fighting. [11]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Evanoff, Josh (2024-12-11). "Global Fight League announces April 2025 launch, roster comprised of 8 ex-UFC champions including Tyron Woodley | BJPenn.com". | BJPenn.com. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  2. ↑ "Global Fight League announces launch, roster includes giant list of former UFC fighters". MMA Junkie. 2024-12-11. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  3. 1 2 3 "Global Fight League announces launch, roster includes giant list of former UFC fighters". MMA Junkie. 2024-12-11. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  4. ↑ Evanoff, Josh (2024-12-11). "Global Fight League announces April 2025 launch, roster comprised of 8 ex-UFC champions including Tyron Woodley | BJPenn.com". | BJPenn.com. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  5. ↑ Writer, James Brizuela Contributing Sports (2024-12-11). "Multiple Former UFC Stars Added to New Global Fight League Organization". Newsweek. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  6. ↑ Mazique, Brian. "10 Former UFC Champions Headline New MMA Organization's Roster". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  7. ↑ Sherdog.com. "Global Fight League Reveals Team-Based Format, Roster with Multiple Ex-UFC Champs". Sherdog. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  8. ↑ "Global Fight League reveals massive list of signings, including 8 ex-UFC champs, for new team-based MMA organization". Yahoo Sports. 2024-12-11. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  9. ↑ "Global Fight League reveals massive list of signings, including 8 ex-UFC champs, for new team-based MMA organization". Yahoo Sports. 2024-12-11. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  10. ↑ Sherdog.com. "Global Fight League Reveals Team-Based Format, Roster with Multiple Ex-UFC Champs". Sherdog. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  11. ↑ Meshew, Jed (2024-12-11). "Global Fight League announces new team-based organization, huge list of signings including 8 former UFC champions". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
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