PFL-MVP merger creates new MMA challenger with eye on 2027 launch

Most Valuable Promotions and the PFL announced Thursday that they are merging under a consolidated banner of MVP MMA, a move both companies believe will accelerate their growth in the combat sports landscape. MVP co-founder Jake Paul has promised the company will directly target and compete with the UFC. MVP, led by Paul and co-founder Nakisa Bidarian, has been active in boxing since 2021. The company made its MMA promotional debut in May, featuring the returns of pioneers Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano on Netflix. The PFL, which launched in 2018 and currently airs on ESPN, is led by CEO John Martin. In a joint interview with ESPN, Bidarian and Martin discussed how the merger came together and their vision for the immediate future. When and how did this merger come together? Bidarian: Around the time the PFL was acquiring Bellator in 2023, I said to the previous ownership, you guys should be thinking about MVP for the PFL, not Bellator. We can always buy the fighter contracts of Bellator; we don't need to buy that organization. But that didn't happen at that time. Martin: The PFL has the second-best fighter roster in the world, but we were having a hard time getting people to pay attention to us. So, last fall, I started really paying attention to what MVP was doing. I just really respected the sheer numbers of what Jake [Paul] could do as an athlete and what Nakisa and Jake were doing as promoters -- and I thought the way to jump-start the acceleration of the PFL was to merge with MVP, which was really the only partner I ever thought was a viable complement for PFL. I was intending to reach out to Nakisa after their inaugural May 16th event. But I was on the Ariel Helwani podcast a number of months before that and was asked about a potential rebrand, which we were in the process of looking at. After I left that podcast, I received a text from Nakisa that said, "Hey, if you're thinking about rebranding PFL, why don't you hit me up?" There was a bigger idea there. And that's how this all started. Why has PFL struggled to attract attention? Bidarian: There's an endemic brand in the UFC that has dominated the conversation for a very long time. And if you think about the transitions the PFL has gone through, from being World Series of Fighting to PFL, to a tournament format, to buying Bellator and having 14 different products in the marketplace. They have also never had a broadcast partner that has done justice to the PFL product on a week-in and week-out basis. Our new PFL existing investor said something to the Wall Street Journal: What he loves about MVP is we're never off. Even if it's someone else's event, we're talking about the event. It's about being part of the cultural conversation, and no one does that better than us. Being able to do that with PFL is going to benefit both sides. How aggressively will you pursue MMA free agents? Martin: We've always been shopping for talent. We put out a release about six weeks ago, honestly trying to get a little bit ahead of whatever [longtime MMA promoter] Scott Coker is trying to do, and we signed nearly 20 new fighters from over 10 countries. We're always looking for the best talent we can find, and now being able to go to any athlete or fighter and say, "Hey, listen, if you're a boxer and want to do MMA, we can do that. If you're an MMA athlete and want to box, we can offer that, too." I spoke to a number of fighters yesterday, and everybody is excited. How quickly will the PFL brand transition to MVP MMA? Martin: I want to be in a position where, by Jan. 1, everything is ready to transition over. Bidarian: We're aggressively in the market for a new U.S. partner. The whole idea is to launch MVP MMA with that partner in 2027. Hopefully, that's with ESPN in some capacity. It would be great to have the No. 1 sports program in the U.S. continue to invest aggressively in combat sports. We already have a great relationship on the MVPW boxing side; it's a natural point of introducing this MMA brand to the world in the right way. What can you divulge on potential broadcast partners beyond 2026? Martin: I think this [merger] announcement has already had some impact. I think we've heard from every major U.S. distributor [in the last 24 hours]. I hope that ESPN does really want to make a commitment into combat sports. As everyone knows, I've been somewhat critical about the level of promotion and support we've gotten from ESPN, but we've also got to demonstrate that we deserve to be there. I'm very respectful of MVP's existing relationship with Netflix. Between the streamers and traditional networks, I think all of them just got more interested. Will all PFL titleholders maintain their championship status through the MVP rebrand, and what do you hope those championships come to stand for? Bidarian: Yes. And to be the MVP world champion, the Most Valuable Player, right? It's pretty clear what that means. But it's also about storytelling and how you show fans these are the best fighters in the world. The openness and desire to do cross-promoting, like John does with Rizin in Japan, that's something we will always advocate for. But I've said this to our partners at Netflix: The best fighters in the world are who the fans believe are the best fighters in the world. That means: How do we sell to people that these are the best fighters in the world, and get Gen Z and Gen Alpha to consume that belief and transact and engage with that? To many kids, Jake Paul is the best boxer in the world, and that's because that is what they've seen. That is what they've learned. Our job, no matter who the best fighter in the world is -- and I believe actually some of the true, pound-for-pound best fighters in the world, like Usman Nurmagomedov, are in our organization -- but to make fans understand, appreciate, accept and endorse that we have the best fighters in the world. And we will do that. There is a PFL event this weekend in New York. What are your thoughts on Dakota Ditcheva's potential as she makes her return against Denise Kielholtz after a year off? Bidarian: During our time of advising the PFL years ago, I made the case a few times to let us sign Dakota to MVP, let us help bring her brand to the masses and to a different audience. I told them, "Let us attach Jake Paul and Amanda Serrano to her." And there was always resistance for whatever reason, but that was prior to John's leadership. Now, John is the leader and he's all bought in. We're going to make Dakota a household name. How would you characterize how directly in competition you are and plan to be with the UFC? Bidarian: Of course, we're in competition with the UFC on a day-in, day-out basis. Whether we can "replace" the UFC in short order is a different question. The UFC content is similar to our MVP MMA business, and TKO's Zuffa Boxing is also in competition with our boxing offering. John and I are not fools who think we're going to overtake the UFC overnight. And Jake has never said that either. What he has said is, "We're punching up, and they're taking notice." I think we have a clear pathway to being the Pepsi to their Coke in very short order. I mean, in 12 to 24 months. And after that, it's about who is Coke, who is Pepsi? There are periods where Pepsi has taken a lot of the market share. Nike and Adidas, Jake said yesterday in an interview, that Adidas is now doing better than Nike in some markets. That's the goal, and we will get there. We are competing with the UFC day in and day out, and it's about, where is our positioning and how quickly can we get to where they're at?