The art of bracketology is officially coming to the Professional Fighters League this year.
The organization, which ran a points-based playoff system for a
tournament since its inception as PFL, has changed up how it will
operate its eight grand prix divisions. In its stead will be a
single-elimination tourney, with the eight classes each sporting
eight participants plus a couple alternates for each weight
category. The eight division are the following: heavyweight, light
heavyweight, middleweight, welterweight, lightweight,
featherweight, bantamweight and women’s flyweight—of note, the
league is re-adding 185 pounds while bringing the 135-pounders to
the table for the first time.
On Thursday, the PFL sent out a press release announcing that it
will be airing its bracket reveal show on ESPN+ this coming
Tuesday, March 11. On that, the company will unveil the seeding of
every competitor in the tournament, showing the path they will have
to traverse in order to win it all. Play-by-play caller Sean
O’Connell will host and be joined by color commentator Dan Hardy for
the duration of the proceedings. Fans outside of the U.S. will be
able to catch the programming on either Dazn or one of their other
regional networks depending on the location of the viewer.
Other changes have also been enacted to the tournaments going
forward, including the very rules of combat. Previous seasons
always prohibited elbow strikes, out of the concern of lacerations
ejecting fighters out of the tourney. In 2025 and beyond, elbows
will be permitted again. The prize for past seasons had been a
culmination of wins for the competitors that could add up to $1
million when combining their four or five victories to get to the
top. Now, fighters will earn their standard salaries as per their
contracts, and those that prevail atop tournaments will take home
an extra $500,000.