Tag: pfl

PFL-Star Cedric Doumbe scoffs at potential return to the UFC after initial snub: ‘I’m better off here’

Cedric Doumbe rules out future move to the UFC after initial snub I'm better off with the PFLEarlier this week, the UFC snapped up PFL (Professional Fighters League) star, Kayla Harrison to a stunning Octagon debut…

Cedric Doumbe rules out future move to the UFC after initial snub I'm better off with the PFL

Earlier this week, the UFC snapped up PFL (Professional Fighters League) star, Kayla Harrison to a stunning Octagon debut in April, however, it appears upcoming French star, Cedric Doumbe won’t be following in the Olympian’s footsteps and penning a deal with the Dana White-led promotion – again.

Doumbe, a former GLORY Kickboxing champion at the welterweight limit twice, is slated to make his sophomore PFL debut at PFl 7 in March in the Peter Murray-led promotion’s return to Paris, France.

Taking on the unbeaten prospect, Baissangour Chamsoudinov, Doumbe will attempt to turn in his second consecutive victory since his move to the promotion, following a stunning 9-second KO win over Jordan Zebo in a Knockout of the Year contender last September – in front of French World Cup winner, Kylian Mbappe. 

Cedric Doumbe unsure of future UFC move

Released from a penned deal with the UFC following the cancellation of an Octagon debut against Darian Weeks at a ‘Fight Night’ event billed for Paris back in 2022, Doumbe, who has been tipped to eventually make the transition to the Octagon, has shot down the idea of signing a deal once more.

“That makes me smile because they [the UFC] f*cked up,” Cedric Doumbe told MMA Fighting. “They f*cked up, but I didn’t lose anything. They lost. So, it is what it is, you know? Everything happens for a reason. I’m just doing my thing. I know I would do the same, maybe even better, maybe less in UFC, but I’m just doing my thing. Some people say that, ‘You will never have done that (walkout) with the mattress in the UFC. They will never let you do this.’ So, I’m better here [in the PFL].”

“We never know for tomorrow, but I think 90 percent, no,” Cedric Doumbe said of his chances of signing with the UFC in the future. “90 percent no. Because I’m not 20 [years old]. I’m not 21. I’m not that younger fighter. So, I think I’m more close to the end than the beginning, so I think I will not open the UFC door again. But, we never know.” 

Would you like to see Cedric Doumbe eventually make a UFC move?

PFL x Bellator Supercard Officially Set for February 24 in Riyadh Featuring Four Champion vs. Champion Fights

PFL x Bellator supercardThe PFL x Bellator supercard is officially set for February 24 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A few short months…

PFL x Bellator supercard

The PFL x Bellator supercard is officially set for February 24 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

A few short months after the Professional Fighter League’s blockbuster announcement that it had acquired Bellator MMA, we now know when and where the highly anticipated event featuring PFL champions vs. Bellator champions will go down. According to a report from Ariel Helwani, the event will emanate from the Saudi Arabian capital next month with a slew of exciting fights.

In the main event of the evening, 2023 PFL heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira will take on Bellator MMA heavyweight titleholder Ryan ‘Darth’ Bader. In the co-main event, 2023 PFL light heavyweight champion Impa Kasanganay will face Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen in a 185-pound fight.

Also announced for the main card is 2023 PFL featherweight champion Jesus Pinedo who will face Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull, and 2023 PFL welterweight champion Magomed Magomedkerimov will square off with Bellator welterweight champion Jason Jackson.

Rounding out the card will be a series of can’t-miss clashes, including former PFL heavyweight champion Bruno Cappelozza vs. Bellator light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov in a heavyweight bout. Clay Collard vs. A.J. McKee will go down in a lightweight scrap and fight fans will also be treated to a heavy-hitting affair as Thiago Santos meets Yoel Romero.

Also expected to feature on the card will be the return of women’s boxing ‘GWOAT’ Claressa Shields, and the pro mixed martial arts debut of Muhammad Ali’s grandson, Biaggio Ali Walsh.

Check out the full fight card below:

PFL vs. Bellator Main card (ESPN+ PPV at 3 p.m. ET):

  • Renan Ferreira vs. Ryan Bader
  • Impa Kasanganay vs. Johnny Eblen
  • Magomed Magomedkerimov vs. Jason Jackson
  • Jesus Pinedo vs. Patricio Pitbull
  • Bruno Cappelozza vs. Vadim Nemkov
  • Thiago Santos vs. Yoel Romero
  • Clay Collard vs. AJ McKee

Prelims (ESPN News/ESPN+ at 12:30 p.m. ET):

  • Gabriel Braga vs. Aaron Pico
  • Biaggio Ali Walsh vs. Chris Morris
  • Claressa Shields vs. Kelsey DeSantis
  • Abdullah Al-Qahtani vs. Edukondal Rao
  • Malik Basahel vs. Vinicius Pereira

As always, the card is subject to change.

Exclusive – Luke Thomas insists ‘It’s Not Possible’ for PFL to compete with the UFC: ‘It Cannot Be Done’

Luke Thomas on PFL vs. UFCLuke Thomas doesn’t see any possible way for the PFL to compete with the UFC. 2023 was a fairly…

Luke Thomas on PFL vs. UFC

Luke Thomas doesn’t see any possible way for the PFL to compete with the UFC.

2023 was a fairly big year for the Professional Fighters League. The promotion made headlines when they announced their blockbuster signing of former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou. In addition, the PFL inked a deal with social media star Jake Paul and Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund acquired a minority stake in the promotion.

Of course, the biggest bit of PFL news came when founder Donn Davis revealed that they had acquired Bellator MMA and all the talent signed to the Scott Coker-led fight company.

Speaking with Mike Owens in a LowKick MMA exclusive interview, Morning Kombat’s Luke Thomas suggested that all of these big-money moves could translate to success in the new year, but believes the PFL’s biggest obstacle will be getting eyes on their product and fans in the arena, particularly stateside.

“I think there’s a lot of potential. We don’t really know if Francis is gonna fight in MMA in 2024,” Thomas said. “I tend to think he probably doesn’t, but even if he ends up fighting a nobody, that’s still better than what the PFL has. Obviously, it’d be better if they had a second name. It takes two names to promote a pay-per-view and they don’t have that right now, but something that could potentially be great for them is Jake Paul fighting on that card against somebody that people care about like Dillon Danis. That could be potentially big for them.

“Putting together some kind of event where they could pull 10,000 or 20,000 people. They pulled 20,000 when they went to France. They’ve pulled good cards when they went to the 3Arena [in Dublin], but in the United States, I went to one in my hometown, Washington D.C. and they had less than 3,000. And they were pretty happy with that. It’s tough to draw here.

“If they can solve that problem, that would be great. If they can get their numbers solidly above 400,000 viewers… They typically hover at 300,000 or below and sometimes below 200,000. That has to categorically change.”

Luke Thomas Believes ‘Pure Luck’ is the only thing that will help the PFL

Following the announcement of PFL’s purchase of Bellator, Donn Davis suggested that his promotion will eventually be a co-leader in the world of MMA, sharing the throne that the UFC currently occupies all by its lonesome.

Aside from a few extenuating circumstances, Thomas doesn’t see any future where the PFL can stand side-by-side with the UFC, let alone compete with the Las Vegas-based juggernaut.

“It is not possible for the PFL to compete with the UFC,” Thomas continued. “It is actually in the real world, not possible. It cannot be done. There is nothing that they can do to bridge that gap. So when we’re talking about a successful 2024 for them, I think getting a little bit of luck. Somebody defecting inside the ranks of the UFC. That would be just pure luck. That would be good.

“The court case, the antitrust case [against the UFC], if that ends up having an effect, and of course, there could be challenges to any kind of verdict that goes against the UFC, but nevertheless, opening up that possibility of what that could mean. There’s just a lot of ways that… Here’s the reality, folks. Unless the United States Congress gets involved by passing the Muhammad Ali Act to MMA, or this antitrust case really railroads the UFC, or there is some kind of internal scandal that just makes the UFC collapse overnight, there is nothing that PFL, Bellator, ONE, or any other competitor out there can do to actually compete with the UFC.”

Thomas hopes that the PFL can continue to grow and show signs of further success in 2024, even it if means only being a distant second to the empire that Dana White has helped build.

“I hope PFL has a great 2024. They could have a much better 2024 than 2023 and 2023 was a good year for them, all things being what they were, but ultimately, I am telling you how this movie ends,” he concluded.

Watch the full exclusive interview with Luke Thomas:

PFL CEO Remains Confident former UFC Champion Francis Ngannou will make his return to MMA in 2024

Francis NgannouPFL CEO Peter Murray remains confident that Francis Ngannou will make his Smart Cage debut in 2024 even though…

Francis Ngannou

PFL CEO Peter Murray remains confident that Francis Ngannou will make his Smart Cage debut in 2024 even though he has already booked a boxing bout with Anthony Joshua.

“We’re really proud and happy for Francis, but he will be returning to the cage later this year after the Joshua fight,” Murray told MMA reporter John Morgan earlier this week.

“Francis is gonna take on both sports,” he added.

Last week, renowned combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani broke the news that Ngannou would head back to Riyadh for a clash with former unified heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua. Though not officially announced, the bout is expected to go down on March 8 in the Saudi Arabian capital.

Francis Ngannou says pFL debut might not happen this year

Speaking with Helwani on a recent episode of The MMA Hour, Ngannou suggested that there is a chance he won’t compete in mixed martial arts before the end of 2024. Aside from his fight with Joshua, ‘The Predator’ is gunning for a rematch with reigning WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. Ngannou went toe-to-toe with ‘The Gypsy King’ in his pro boxing debut last fall, coming up short by way of a closely contested split decision.

A rematch clause between the two requires a potential sequel to get underway within one year of their first meeting which went down on October 28, 2023

However, Murray can’t see the PFL stepping aside for a third time after signing a ground-breaking deal with the former UFC heavyweight titleholder almost a year ago.

“Francis is committed to the PFL,” Murray said when asked about the possibility of Ngannou staying in boxing for the rest of 2024 if he beats Joshua. “He’s committed to continuing competing in MMA, so we don’t expect that” (h/t theScore).

Ngannou has not competed in MMA since defeating Ciryl Gane in January 2022.

PFL CEO Remains Confident former UFC Champion Francis Ngannou will make his return to MMA in 2024

Francis NgannouPFL CEO Peter Murray remains confident that Francis Ngannou will make his Smart Cage debut in 2024 even though…

Francis Ngannou

PFL CEO Peter Murray remains confident that Francis Ngannou will make his Smart Cage debut in 2024 even though he has already booked a boxing bout with Anthony Joshua.

“We’re really proud and happy for Francis, but he will be returning to the cage later this year after the Joshua fight,” Murray told MMA reporter John Morgan earlier this week.

“Francis is gonna take on both sports,” he added.

Last week, renowned combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani broke the news that Ngannou would head back to Riyadh for a clash with former unified heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua. Though not officially announced, the bout is expected to go down on March 8 in the Saudi Arabian capital.

Francis Ngannou says pFL debut might not happen this year

Speaking with Helwani on a recent episode of The MMA Hour, Ngannou suggested that there is a chance he won’t compete in mixed martial arts before the end of 2024. Aside from his fight with Joshua, ‘The Predator’ is gunning for a rematch with reigning WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. Ngannou went toe-to-toe with ‘The Gypsy King’ in his pro boxing debut last fall, coming up short by way of a closely contested split decision.

A rematch clause between the two requires a potential sequel to get underway within one year of their first meeting which went down on October 28, 2023

However, Murray can’t see the PFL stepping aside for a third time after signing a ground-breaking deal with the former UFC heavyweight titleholder almost a year ago.

“Francis is committed to the PFL,” Murray said when asked about the possibility of Ngannou staying in boxing for the rest of 2024 if he beats Joshua. “He’s committed to continuing competing in MMA, so we don’t expect that” (h/t theScore).

Ngannou has not competed in MMA since defeating Ciryl Gane in January 2022.

Breaking – Francis Ngannou set to fight Anthony Joshua in ten round professional boxing match in March

Francis Ngannou set to fight Anthony Joshua in ten round professional boxing match in RiyadhFormer undisputed UFC heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou is set for his sophomore outing in the squared circle later this…

Francis Ngannou set to fight Anthony Joshua in ten round professional boxing match in Riyadh

Former undisputed UFC heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou is set for his sophomore outing in the squared circle later this year, taking on former world heavyweight boxing champion, Anthony Joshua over the course of ten rounds in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on March 9.

As per an initial report from Ariel Helwani, per Royal Court Saudi advisor, Turki Al-Sheikh, former UFC heavyweight champion, Ngannou will return to the Middle East later this year for a professional boxing match against former world champion, Joshua – with an official press conference between the two slated for later in January.

Francis Ngannou set for Middle East clash with Anthony Joshua

“Breaking: Francis Ngannou vs. Anthony Joshua is a done deal, per @Turki_alalshikh. Ten-round boxing match in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.”

Sidelined since he made his professional boxing debut back in October in Riyadh, PFL (Professional Fighters League) signed heavyweight, Ngannou made his first venture to the squared circle in a ten round fight with WBC heavyweight kingpin, Tyson Fury, dropping a controversial split decision loss.

Heralded for his performance in his first-ever professional boxing outing, Cameroonian knockout ace, Ngannou landed a stunning knockdown on the Morecambe native, before dropping a dubious decision loss in Saudi Arabia.

As for Joshua, the former two-time heavyweight world champion is in the midst of an impressive three-fight winning run, compiled over the course of last year, most recently stopping Otto Wallin with a corner’s stoppage TKO win in Riyadh, as part of a ‘Day of Reckoning’ billed card for the country. 

Yet to make his promotional bow with the PFL, Ngannou’s most recent outing in mixed martial arts came in the form of a unanimous decision win over then-interim heavyweight champion, defending and unifying his title at UFC 270 back in January 2022 in Anaheim, California. The outing came as Ngannou’s last on his Octagon contract, which expired at the beginning of last year to boot. 

Who wins in a March 2024 boxing showdown: Francis Ngannou or Anthony Joshua?