Kayla Harrison, New Fighters and More Innovation Brings Excitement To New PFL Season

At the start of each season, Professional Fighters League founder and chairman Donn Davis is most psyched for one thing: the unknown.

“The thing I look forward to every season is the unknown,” Davis said. “What fighter will make the journey, win four fights and become champion?”And along with the championship comes a $1 million check awarded to each of the PFL’s six division winners.

The PFL — the only season-based MMA promotion and arguably the most innovative sports league on the planet — will kick off its 2022 season on April 20 at Esports Arena in Arlington, Texas. PFL 1’s prelim bouts will air on on ESPN+ starting at 5:30 p.m.. The main card will show on ESPN beginning at 9 p.m.

The event will feature light heavyweight and men’s lightweight competition, showcasing a pair of defending champions — Antonio Carlos Junior at 205 pounds, Raush Manfio at 155 — along with the PFL debut of veteran UFC lightweight Jeremy Stephens.

3 fighters to watch this season

Kayla Harrison is a bonafide superstar, not just in the PFL, but in the entire MMA industry. She is a two-champion in the PFL women’s lightweight division. She is 12-0 and has steamrolled all the fighters in her way. She will begin her mission for a third consecutive title on May 6 at PFL 3 with a match against Marina Mokhnatkina (6-2-0).

Harrison’s first two PFL seasons have produced eight wins and not many stressful moments. She’s finished all but one opponent, with five of them not escaping the first round. But there’s a new threat to Harrison’s crown. That threat is Julia Budd, the former Bellator featherweight champion. She is 16-3, with her only defeats coming against an ultimate trifecta: Cris Cyborg, Amanda Nunes and Ronda Rousey. So a Harrison-Budd showdown for the championship looks like a safe prediction.

Jeremy Stephens (28-19) will make his PFL debut on April 20 when he battles former UFC-er and pro boxer Clay Collard (20-9) in the night’s main event. Stephens had been a cornerstone of the UFC stable for nearly 15 years, fighting more than 30 times for the league. He scored UFC victories over former champions Renan Barao, Gilbert Melendez and Rafael dos Anjos. It would be a compelling storyline if the tournament leads Stephens to a rematch with former UFC champion Anthony Pettis, who is also in the PFL. Pettis took a split decision over Stephens at UFC 136.

Ray Cooper III — one of the ascending stars in the MMA world — is the reigning welterweight champion. His title-winning bout against Magomed Magomedkerimovin in October qualified for classic status. It will be riveting to see if Cooper’s rise will continue throughout the 2022 season. Cooper (23-8-1) will face Magomed Umalatov (11-0-0) on Friday, May 6 in Arlington.

More PFL innovation in 2022

The PFL — a league famous for its Smart Cage technology — keeps adding more tech bling to its product. For the 2022 season, the promotion will launch KickSpeed to enhance viewing experience. KickSpeed will measure the velocity of each kick in miles per hour and will be integrated into the broadcast. The PFL already measures punch impact by inserting a computer chip into the fighter’s gloves.

Last year, the PFL introduced the Fighter Performance Rating (FPR), a proprietary algorithm that gives a holistic measure of how a fighter performed in each round. This year, Davis said the FPR will be perfected, as its integrated into on-air graphics, providing fans with analytical data of both combatants during a fight. Davis calls FPR a “breakthrough innovation in combat sports.”

How to watch this season

In the U.S., the PFL scored a massive broadcasting coup earlier this year when it was announced that the entire 2022 PFL playoffs and the majority of regular season events will air live on ESPN and simulcast on ESPN+ with additional event coverage broadcast on ESPN2.

Globally, the PFL is making massive gains, too. Its season will broadcast to 160 countries with 30 different media partners. Davis said, “we will have broad reach around the world.”