PFL announced a supercard event featuring four champion vs. champion fights to be held on Feb. 24, 2024, in Saudi Arabia, a day after UFC’s debut event in the country was postponed due to dissatisfaction over card quality.
Donn Davis and PFL? They’re having a stellar week, no doubt.
Why, you ask? Well, on Tuesday, PFL dropped a bombshell. They’re kick-starting 2024 with the much-anticipated PFL vs. Bellator supercard. This epic event is set for Feb. 24 in Riydah, Saudi Arabia. And guess what? It’s featuring four champion vs. champion fights.
Now, here’s the kicker. This news broke just a day after rumors started swirling. The UFC’s debut event in Saudi Arabia? Postponed. From March 2 to June. Why? Apparently, Saudi officials weren’t too thrilled about the card quality.
Donn Davis had a chat with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. And he didn’t mince words. “That’s not a coincidence,” he said.
Davis went on. “The UFC March 2 card was cancelled the day before our fight announcement. Those in the know? They said it wasn’t a mega-event. Not worthy of Saudi Arabia. A poor fight-quality card the UFC put forth on March 2.”
But Davis isn’t throwing shade at the UFC. He’s not saying they can’t put together a great card for Saudi Arabia. It’s just that they weren’t as focused on it as PFL was.
“Could UFC load up a card and have a mega-card? They could!” Davis continued. “Do they do it often? Not really. But we? We’re going to do it every time. Our host partners, like Saudi Arabia, and our PPV partners like DAZN or ESPN+? They know they can count on us. We’re thinking big for our business model going forward.”
2024? It’s going to be a big year for PFL. They’ve acquired Bellator, and the PFL vs. Bellator supercard is just the first step. They’re aiming to be a “co-leader” in the MMA space.
Davis is stoked about the announcement. He thinks it’s another step towards showing that PFL has something substantial to offer MMA fans.
“More than happy,” Davis said about the reaction. “We asked ourselves, what’s every single fight we could give MMA fans? If it’s not on this card, it’s because of injury or conflict. We held nothing back. So we’re delighted with how it came together.”
Davis continued, “No matter where you’re coming from – current fan, skeptic, or not yet a fan – your interest and respect have gone up a few notches. That’s our goal. We want to show fans that MMA is big. There are 650 million fans out there. UFC has a great product. We have a different and unique, great product. It’s not a matter of choosing one over the other. This isn’t a Coke or Pepsi situation. PFL is doing something different for fans and fighters. And I think people are starting to get that vibe.”