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3 Things to Know This Week in MMA
It's April and the GFL, UFC, and PFL Got Things Brewing
Ed Carbajal
April 03, 2025
Image: PFL
MMA
PFL, GFL, & Torrez Finney’s Debut
April is as good a time as any to start up if you’re a startup in MMA.
I know the PFL isn’t a “startup” anymore, but they’re…something. And their tournament starts today! In the same week, the GFL announced their inaugural events, which will happen over the course of a weekend in May. Plus, a middleweight I have had the pleasure of interviewing a few times, who had to try out more than once ( after winning a few times) to get into the UFC, makes his debut this weekend.
Here are three things to know for this week:
PFL World Tournament: First Round Begins Tonight
The PFL is still doing tournaments, but not the way they used to. They announced the lineup and schedule in February; if you missed those details, you can check them out here.
The main card of all the events is scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN2 and ESPN+, but they’re not very good at marketing them, so be sure to check your listings.
GFL Announces First Events: May 24 and 25
Image: GFL
Broadcast details are said to come later this month, but they have announced the full cards for their first two events. You can see them in my post on 𝕏 below:
Matchups by Day include:
Saturday, May 24 – Day 1 (1:30 PM PST / 4:30 PM EST)Los Angeles vs. São Paulo (BW) – Urijah Faber vs. Renan Barão
Los Angeles vs. São Paulo (FW) – Chad Mendes vs. Maike Linhares
New York vs. London (LW) – Anthony Pettis vs. Benson Henderson
New York
— Carbazel MMA 🥋 (@Carbazel)
2:28 PM • Mar 31, 2025
We have dates and a venue. If it doesn’t sink them, we might have a new promotion to help MMA out. Hopefully, they make it past what’s been announced.
A lot can happen between now and May.
Torrez Finney Fight Week: Finney (10-0) vs. Robert Valentin (11-4)
Finney probably had the hardest time getting into the UFC.
You can see his record, he’s undefeated. Three of his wins were on Dana White’s Contender Series. I don’t know why they made it so hard for him to get into the UFC, but he’s there and I hope he makes the middleweight division exciting.
Because it needs it right now.
That’s something he shared with me, and I think fans might agree with him. If you haven’t seen my pieces on him, check them out on Spectation Sports. This is my last chat with him:
Whether you're a die-hard fan or just looking for some exciting entertainment, these fights are sure to deliver.
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