Some of the top Bellator names who found themselves under the PFL banner last year are far from happy with their new employer.
The PFL attempted to strengthen its standing in mixed martial arts and its pursuit of achieving “co-leader” status alongside the UFC by purchasing the Bellator MMA organization late last year.
The promotion has since staged its first PFL vs. Bellator card, commenced global and regional seasons, and opened up a “reimagined” version of the brand it acquired in the form of the Bellator Champions Series.
While that has brought with it some entertaining cards and fights, things have been far from entirely positive for the PFL in 2024. In attempting to separate itself from the UFC, PFL higher-ups have frequently claimed to be “fighter first” and an improved home for athletes compared to its rival. This year, though, has seen numerous fighters share their issues.
Sabah Homasi repeatedly bemoaned the lack of payment to cover his medical expenses from a Bellator fight last September. Prior to her debut in October, Cris Cyborg frequently slammed the PFL online for not booking her. Gegard Mousasi and Douglas Lima claimed the organization was refusing to honor their contracts because they earn too much money, with the former even commencing legal proceedings against the company following his subsequent release.
Those instances suggest the PFL’s purchase has left some Bellator fighters worse off, and the ongoing forced inactivity experienced by many is doing little to dismiss that suggestion.
One champion who feels hard done by is bantamweight standout Patchy Mix. Since defending his title against Magomed Magomedov in Paris this past May, “No Love” hasn’t made it back to the cage.
While he was scheduled for a return to the French capital this month, that event was among those suddenly canceled with little explanation. And in a post on X, Mix claimed a planned rescheduling of his return for January has also now been called off.
“I’ve been training my ass off for the last half of year for nothing,” Mix wrote. “This is frustrating in the prime of my career and I’ve had my fight in November cancelled? Then now again I’m being told I’m off January Dubai card? I am the best in the world and I want to fight to prove it.”
It didn’t take long for another champ to share that sentiment — this time the consensus Bellator GOAT, Patrício “Pitbull” Freire, who is without a fight since March.
“I haven’t fought since February. I wanted to fight 3x this year, but I was told I’d have to wait until December 31st and found out online my opponent would fight someone else. Then they had a replacement, I bring people over, spend more money with the camp and there’s no fight.”
In follow-up posts, the Brazilian went as far as to brand the PFL’s acquisition of Bellator as a “disaster” for the sport of MMA.
And it wasn’t just champions showing discontent this past weekend.
The man scheduled to challenge Mix this month prior to the unexplained cancellation, Leandro Higo, also took to social media to express his fury with the PFL after seeing his opponent speak out.
“This is very frustrating. We have no clue about when we might be fighting after two fight cancellations in a row. Time is of the essence in this game, we can’t waste our primes on the sidelines. I’m working hard to take that title, spending money, sweat and blood. What’s going on?”
When announcing its plans for this year, the PFL laid out eight Bellator Champions Series events and promised two championship contests on each. But it’s ultimately only put on five, the most recent being in London this past September, and filled the outlined quota of champions on just one of those cards.
It remains to be seen what the PFL has planned for the likes of Mix and Freire in 2025 — and for the rest of those who were hoping to compete on the now-scrapped Bellator Champions Series events in the back end of this year.
For now, the promotion will be focusing on a successful return to Saudi Arabia this week for its PFL World Championship and PFL MENA Championship shows in Riyadh.
But as another year comes to a close for the organization, it’s safe to say things haven’t gone as hoped since the purchase of Bellator, especially for the high-profile fighters who came with it.