PFL is back and bigger than ever with the 2025 World Tournament! Eight weight classes. 64 world-class fighters. One shot at glory. Starting this April, experience the ultimate MMA showdown, culminating in the August finals.
20 MILLION $
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Professional Fighters League (PFL) today announced the launch of its new-look 2025 World Tournament, featuring eight weight classes comprised of eight fighters competing to claim the title of PFL Tournament Champion. The action gets underway on April 3 with semifinals starting on June 12 and finals beginning on August 1.
All tournament fights will air live on ESPN and ESPN+ in the United States.
“The PFL World Tournament is continued innovation by PFL, and we are thrilled to present to global MMA fans an even more exciting product,” Peter Murray, PFL CEO said. “One shot, single elimination, nothing more exciting in all of sports.”
The single-elimination tournament features brackets at Heavyweight, Light Heavyweight, Middleweight, Welterweight, Lightweight, Featherweight, Bantamweight, and Women’s Flyweight. 64 of the promotion’s best fighters from around the world will need to win three straight times in five months to become PFL Tournament Champion.
The opening round fights and the semifinals will be three, five-minute rounds while the finals consist of five, five-minute rounds. All events and all fights now allow the use of elbows, as previously reported. The PFL World Tournament will pay out over $20 million in total prize money, including a $500,000 bonus for every winner.
The complete five-month World Tournament dates are as follows:
Opening Round
April 3, 2025
April 11, 2025
April 18, 2025
Semifinals
June 12, 2025
June 20, 2025
June 27, 2025
Championships
August 1, 2025
August 15, 2025
August 21, 2025
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A full tournament roster reveal of all 64 competitors and corresponding matchups will be released in February.
PFL is already facing turbulence at the start of its 2025 season.
Top welterweight contender Magomed Umalatov (17-1) has been removed from the PFL 1 lineup and the season’s 170-pound tournament after missing weight Wednesday, the league announced in a press release. Umalatov was the 2024 welterweight tournament runner-up to Shamil Musaev and was set to fight Logan Storley (16-3) at Thursday’s event in Orlando.
Storley now fights Joseph Luciano (9-2), who was originally scheduled to fight Sarek Shields on the preliminary portion of the card. It is not yet known if Umalatov will be booked for a non-tournament bout this season.
All other welterweight tournament participants successfully made weight, including former Bellator champions Jason Jackson and Andrey Koreshkov, who meet in the opening around.
Watch PFL 1 ceremonial weigh-ins above.
The event also features the start of the featherweight tournament, which features the return of undefeated 2021 league champion Movlid Khaybulaev as he fights jeremy Kennedy, plus 2023 champion Jesus Pinedo matched up with Adam Borics.
See PFL 1 official weigh-in results below.
Main Card (ESPN2, ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET)
Jason Jackson (170.8) vs. Andrey Koreshkov (171)
Jesus Pinedo (145.4) vs. Adam Borics (145.6)
Logan Storley (171) vs. Joseph Luciano (170.4)
Jeremy Kennedy (145.8) vs. Movlid Khaybulaev (145.4)
Preliminary Card (ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)
Mukhamed Berkhamov (171) vs. Thad Jean (170.8)
Gabriel Braga (144.4) vs. Fred Dupras (145.6)
Nathan Kelly (146) vs. Tae Hyun Kim (145.2)
Giannis Bachar (170.6) vs. Masayuki Kikuiri (169.4)
Oh my lord no one gives a shit. Give it up, Ray.
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They should have used the bellator champs in these tournaments instead of letting them go. I’m sure something could have been worked out with the contracts that would have pleased everyone but sounds like PFL had no interest in keeping bellator going or keeping their best fighters apparently. What a waste of money, buy out our closest competition (UFC is a class up) and then bury it and most involved.