The Professional Fighters League (PFL) today announced that it will be the first MMA organization to have a 155-lb female weight-class division, and will be anchored by two-time Olympic judo gold medalist Kayla Harrison.  Starting in the PFL 2019 Season, Kayla Harrison – who is currently #1 in the MMA world rankings – will compete as part of a female 155-lb division, with equal championship prize money as their male counterparts.

“The PFL continues to be an innovator in MMA. In just our first year of operations, we are offering female fighters equal championship prize money to male fighters,” stated Carlos Silva, PFL President. “We are excited to be announcing the first-ever 155-lb female division to be anchored next season by the brightest new star in MMA Kayla Harrison.”  

“PFL is where I want to fight, as I am an athlete who wants to bet on themselves and control my own destiny,” said Kayla Harrison, two-time Olympic gold medalist. “I’m so proud to be a part of the PFL as they are trail blazers in the MMA space – the format is great for fighters and they put ‘fighters first’ in all that they do.  The fact that they’re allowing women to compete for the same prize money as men in the playoffs is unprecedented and the way it should be!”

“We are honored to work with current #1 world-ranked Kayla Harrison,” said Ray Sefo, President of PFL Fighter Operations. “I am sure all MMA fans look forward to watching Kayla fight her way through the dozen great athletes in the PFL 155-lb female division during the PFL 2019 Season.”

As the first ever MMA league to offer fans the familiar sports-calendar format where individual fighters compete in a regular season, single-elimination playoff and season-ending championship, the PFL 2018 Season featured 72 Elite MMA fighters in 6 weight-classes. Each fighter competed in two fights in the PFL Regular Season on Thursday nights in June, July, and August.  Based on results, the top 8 fighters in each weight-class advanced to the single-elimination PFL Playoffs.

The PFL 2018 Playoffs feature single-elimination fights, “MMA meets March Madness,” with the top 8 seeds in each of six weight classes from the PFL Regular Season in the bouts.

The PFL 2018 Playoff schedule kicks off on Friday, October 5 in New Orleans and is followed by event on Saturday, October 13 in Long Beach, CA and on Saturday, October 20 in Washington, D.C.  

The PFL Championship is New Year’s Eve at Madison Square Garden’s Theatre, with six back-to-back title bouts and a history-making $10 million total prize pool.  

Watch the PFL 2018 Playoffs and PFL 2018 Championship live on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) in the US and Facebook Watch streaming Worldwide.

PROFESSIONAL FIGHTERS LEAGUE
The Professional Fighters League (PFL) presents MMA for the first time in the sport format where individuals compete in a regular season, playoffs, and championship. Co-founded by Donn Davis,
Russ Ramsey, and Mark Leschly, the Professional Fighters League is backed by an ownership group of sports, media, and business titans.  PFL 2018 Season has 72 Elite MMA fighters in 6 weight-classes, with each fighting twice in the PFL Regular Season in June, July, and August. The top 8 fighters in each
weight-class advance to the single-elimination PFL Playoffs in October.  The PFL Championship is
New Year’s Eve with the final bouts in each of six weight classes competing for the $10 million prize pool. The PFL 2018 Season is broadcast live on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) and streamed live worldwide on Facebook Watch.  For more info visit PFLmma.com.  


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