Just yesterday (Mon., Dec. 22, 2021), former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight champion, Anthony Pettis, announced that he would be parting ways with the promotion after 12 years of dedicated service in order to test free agency.
And it didn’t take long for “Showtime” to find a new home. According to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, Pettis has inked a multi-fight deal with Professional Fighters League (PFL) to compete in the promotion’s 2021 season.
“Anthony Pettis has agreed to a new deal with PFL, per multiple sources,” wrote Helwani on Twitter. “The former UFC and WEC lightweight champion will be a part of the promotion’s 2021 season and will compete in their lightweight division, sources say.”
Pettis posted the news himself on Twitter, as did PFL.
New deal alert ???? @Showtime_SEG @malkikawa pic.twitter.com/cAotIqjLdz
— Anthony Pettis (@Showtimepettis) December 23, 2020
IT’S SHOWTIME!
Welcome to the PFL, @Showtimepettis! pic.twitter.com/FwPDt3ozhF
— PFL MMA (@ProFightLeague) December 23, 2020
Pettis ended his UFC run with two straight wins against Donald Cerrone and Alex Morono, who he defeated just last Saturday night (Dec. 19, 2020) at UFC Vegas 17 in Las Vegas, Nevada. And though “Showtime” expressed interest in a rematch against Tony Ferguson immediately after his win, it seems his heart was already set elsewhere.
Over the course of a year, PFL has really made some waves in free agency, signing the likes of Rory MacDonald, Fabricio Werdum, Claressa Shields and a slew of other free agents who will join Pettis in its core of fresh faces in 2021.
Of course, the allure of winning one of its several $1 million tournaments is too good to pass up for a lot of these former UFC fighters, who also now have the ability to make a bit more money from sponsorship deals, as well.
How do you think Pettis will do with his new promotion?