Tag: Andrei Arlovski

Video: Is MMA’s newest player, the Global Fight League, set to fail or succeed?

Global Fight League has announced its launch. Will it work in MMA? We discuss on the latest episode of “Spinning Back Clique.”

There appears to be a new player in town.

That’s right, a new MMA promotion has emerged, and it’s looking to put on fights at the top level. Global Fight League announced its launch last week, revealing that it will begin operations in early 2025 and will feature numerous notable names in the sport.

GFL’s roster includes names such as: [autotag]Tyron Woodley[/autotag], [autotag]Anthony Pettis[/autotag], [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag], [autotag]Gegard Mousasi[/autotag], [autotag]Wanderlei Silva[/autotag], Frank Mir, [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag], [autotag]Kevin Lee[/autotag], [autotag]Fabricio Werdum[/autotag], and [autotag]Junior Dos Santos[/autotag] and many others.

How strong is GFL’s roster? What names stand out? Could this promotion find success in a very difficult MMA industry?

MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Mike Bohn, Danny Segura and host “Gorgeous” George discuss the announcement of the GFL launch, along with its initial roster.

Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.

https://youtube.com/live/QvKtS8RXBbs

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Global Fight League announces launch, roster includes giant list of former UFC fighters

GFL has arrived – and it’s bringing fairly massive names from UFC yesteryears with it.

A new player has entered the MMA landscape, and it has arrived with some big names.

Wednesday, Global Fight League (GFL) announced its official launch will come in the opening weeks of 2025. The GFL concept differs from that of UFC and PFL.

While it has a league format and playoffs, it is also team-based and has a draft. There will be six franchises (names and cities to follow). The draft is scheduled for Jan. 24, with an inaugural event to follow in April.

Who’s fighting?

Co-founder Darren Owen revealed on “The Ariel Helwani Show” on Wednesday that the promotion has over 300 fighters under contract. Not all fighters will be drafted.

Of the 92 fighters posted to the promotion’s official website, 45 of them are former UFC fighters. Names include Tyron Woodley, Anthony Pettis, Benson Henderson, Gegard Mousasi, Wanderlei Silva, Frank Mir, Andrei Arlovski, Kevin Lee, Fabricio Werdum, and Junior Dos Santos among others.

Scroll below to see the released names:

  • [autotag]Marcel Adur[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Amirkhon Alikhuzhaev[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Omar Arteaga[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Stuart Austin[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Renan Barao[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Deberson Batista[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Raimundo Batista[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Stephen Beaumont[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Alan Belcher[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Tanner Boser[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Claudeci Brito[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Will Brooks[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Yan Cabral[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Alexsandro Cangaty[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Pedro Carvalho[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Rafael Carvalho[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Alexa Conners[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Kyle Daukaus[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Ayton de Paepe[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Patrizio de Souza[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Robelis Despaigne[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Marcelo Dias[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Miao Ding[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Junior Dos Santos[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Cameron Else[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Tonya Evinger[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Kalindra Faria[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Marciano Ferreira[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Chauncey Foxworth[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Glaico Franca[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Alexander Gustafsson[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Greg Hardy[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Andre Harrison[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Phil Hawes[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Guto Inocente[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Michael Irizarry[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Bubba Jenkins[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Pannie Kianzad[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Ilir Latifi[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Kevin Lee[/autotag]
  • [autotag]William Lima[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Philipe Lins[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Hector Lombard[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Ruan Machado[/autotag]
  • [autotag]John Makdessi[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Lucas Martins[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Aleksandr Maslov[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Jordan Mein[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Dominick Meriweather[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Frank Mir[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Silvania Monteiro[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Marlon Moraes[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Killys Motta[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Gegard Mousasi[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Bi Nguyen[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Ayinda Octave[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Aleksei Oleinik[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Renan Oliveira[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Sidney Outlaw[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Karolina Owczarz[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Oscar Ownsworth[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Denis Palancica[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Rousimar Palharaes[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Lance Palmer[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Chiara Penco[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Markus Perez[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Anthony Pettis[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Jefferson Pontes[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Jimmie Rivera[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Luke Rockhold[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Charles Rosa[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Thiago Santos[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Cleiton Silva[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Wanderlei Silva[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Emiliano Sordi[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Julio Spadaccini[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Andre Soukhamthath[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Roggers Souza[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Gabriel Souza Galindo[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Jeremy Stephens[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Mohamed Tarek Mohey[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Diego Teixeira[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Oli Thompson[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Francisco Trinaldo[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Austin Tweedy[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Feruz Usmonov[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Fabricio Werdum[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Jozef Wittner[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Tyron Woodley[/autotag]

What does GFL provide athletes that other promotions don’t?

According to Owen, GFL offers fighters a 50-50 split in revenue sharing. Additionally, the promotion provides comprehensive support for training and medical bills, retirement benefits, insurance coverage, and more.

Who is behind GFL and where is the money coming from?

Owen is listed as the co-founder and commissioner for GFL and serves essentially as the public face for the promotion. He served as COO of PFL vs. October 2015 to May 2020 and was the founder and CEO of World Series of Fighting Canada, according to his LinkedIn page.

Also listed on the promotion’s website are Arun Parimi (co-founder and COO), Scott Parker (CMO), and Jeffrey Pollack (senior advisor).

Owen declined to identify the source of the funds behind the operation, but did say it’s a silicon valley investor.

How does the regular season work?

Similarly to PFL, GFL has a point system for regular season fights.

A finish victory notches a fighter’s team four points. A decision win earns three points. A draw earns two points. A decision loss earns one point. If a fighter loses by finish, he or she walks away with zero points.

Andrei Arlovski issues statement confirming UFC tenure is over

UFC 303 was the last time Andrei Arlovski will be seen competing inside the octagon, but he’s not done fighting.

UFC 303 might’ve been the last time [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag] will be seen competing inside the octagon, but he says he’s not done fighting.

Following Saturday’s even in Las Vegas, UFC CEO Dana White announced that Arlovski had “his last fight” with the promotion. That was confirmed by Arlovski in an Instagram post Monday.

“My chapter in the UFC is closed, but my book is not finished yet,” Arlovski wrote.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C84lDDkszwc/?img_index=1

With a split decision loss to Martin Buday at UFC 303, Arlovski, 45, closes out a UFC tenure that began way back at UFC 28 in November 2000, which included becoming UFC heavyweight champion in 2005.

Arlovski (34-24 MMA, 23-18 UFC) ends what should be a Hall of Fame career with the second most fights (42) and tied for the second most wins (23) in UFC history. At heavyweight, his 1,585 significant strikes landed are the most in UFC history, while his 11 finishes rank third most in the division.

It’s unclear in which direction Arlovski will take his fighting career from here.

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UFC 303 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Alex Pereira leads card with $42,000

Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 303 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $306,500.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 303 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $311,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC 303 took place at T-Mobile Arena. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

The full UFC 303 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag]: $42,000
def. [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Diego Lopes[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Roman Dolidze[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Macy Chiasson[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Ian Machado Garry[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Michael Page[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Joe Pyfer[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Marc-Andre Barriault[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Andre Fili[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Cub Swanson[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Jean Silva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Charles Jourdain[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Payton Talbott[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Yanis Ghemmouri[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Michelle Waterson-Gomez[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Rei Tsuruya[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Carlos Hernandez[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Vinicius Oliveira[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag]: $11,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $3,948,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $26,685,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 303.

Former UFC champ Andrei Arlovski added to Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler card at UFC 303

Andrei Arlovski’s heavyweight record 42nd octagon walk will happen two weeks later than expected – but on a much bigger stage at UFC 303.

[autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag]’s heavyweight record 42nd walk to the octagon will happen two weeks later than expected – but on a much bigger stage.

Originally scheduled for UFC Fight Night on June 15, Arlovski’s matchup with [autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag] now will go down at UFC 303 on June 29 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).

Buday announced the change in date for his three-round showdown with Arlovski on Sunday on social media following an initial report from MMA journalist Marcel Dorff, but a reason was not revealed (via Instagram):

https://instagram.com/p/C64P9WGtkKy/

🇺🇸 New date and venue !!! But goal stay the same !! Big Win incoming !! Lets go 🇺🇸

Arlovski (34-23 MMA, 23-17 UFC) recently turned 45. He made his promotional debut in November 2000 at UFC 28, where he defeated Aaron Brink. Arlovski has dropped three straight. Prior to that, he had won six of seven with the lone loss against current interim heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall.

Buday (13-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) looks to bounce back from his first promotional defeat, a TKO loss to Shamil Gaziev at UFC 296 in December. The loss snapped a 12-fight winning streak that included UFC victories over Chris Barnett, Lukasz Brzeski, Jake Collier and Josh Parisian.

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The latest UFC 303 lineup now includes:

  • Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler
  • Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree
  • Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Macy Chiasson
  • Andre Fili vs. Cub Swanson
  • Marc-Andre Barriault vs. Joe Pyfer
  • Gillian Robertson vs. Michelle Waterson-Gomez
  • Carlos Hernandez vs. Rei Tsuruya
  • Yanis Ghemmouri vs. Payton Talbott
  • Andrei Arlovski vs. Martin Buday

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 303.

Andrei Arlovski books 42nd UFC fight, faces Martin Buday in Las Vegas

Second-place in all-time UFC appearances, Andrei Arlovski continues to nip at Jim Miller’s heels.

All-time UFC appearance leader Jim Miller returns Saturday at UFC 300, but the man in second place continues to nip at his heels.

Former UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag] has booked his 42nd UFC fight, one behind Miller’s 43 (soon to be 44), as he’ll face [autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag] on June 15 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Arlovski (34-23 MMA, 23-17 UFC) recently turned 45 years old. He made his promotional debut in November 2000 – at UFC 28, when he defeated Aaron Brink. Arlovski is 6-4 in his most recent 10 outings, but is on a four-fight skid.

Buday (13-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) looks to bounce back from his first promotional defeat, a TKO loss to Shamil Gaziev at UFC 296 in December. The loss snapped a 12-fight winning streak that included UFC victories over Chris Barnett, Lukasz Brzeski, Jake Collier, and Josh Parisian.

With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for June 15 includes:

  • Andrei Arlovski vs. Martin Buday
  • Ikram Aliskerov vs. Andre Muniz
  • Jimmy Flick vs. Nate Maness
  • Adam Fugitt vs. Josh Quinlan
  • Gabriella Fernandes vs. Carli Judice
  • Josefine Knutsson vs. Julia Polastri
  • Garrett Armfield vs. Brady Hiestand

UFC Fight Night 234 post-event facts: Jim Miller adds more records to epic resume

Check out all the facts from UFC Fight Night 234, which saw Jim Miller grow his all-time wins record and add more history to his resume.

The UFC returned from its holiday hiatus on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and although it wasn’t the most stacked lineup, UFC Fight Night 234 delivered seven stoppage results out of 11 bouts.

In the main event, Magomed Ankalaev (19-1-1 MMA, 10-1-1 UFC) produced definitive closure on his rivalry with Johnny Walker (21-8 MMA, 7-5 UFC), scoring a second-round knockout in their light heavyweight rematch to potentially set himself up for a championship opportunity.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 234.

UFC Fight Night 234 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Jim Miller, Andrei Arlovski get max non-title payouts

UFC Fight Night 234 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 234 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $159,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC Fight Night 234 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 234 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Gabriel Benitez[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Mario Bautista[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Brunno Ferreira[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Phil Hawes[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Preston Parsons[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Matthew Semelsberger[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Marcus McGhee[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Gaston Bolanos[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Farid Basharat[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Taylor Lapilus[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Jean Silva[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Westin Wilson[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Nikolas Motta[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Tom Nolan[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Joshua Van[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Felipe Bunes[/autotag]: $4,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2341 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

  • “UFC Fight Night 234: Ankalaev vs. Walker 2” – $159,500

Year-to-date total: $159,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $22,866,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 234.

Waldo Cortes-Acosta reflects on surreal matchup vs. former UFC champ Andrei Arlovski

Waldo Cortes-Acosta finds it wild he’s fighting Andrei Arlovski in 2024.

[autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag] never thought he would be fighting [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag]. Yet, here he is just days away from facing the living legend.

It’s a surreal matchup for Cortes-Acosta (10-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC), who has been watching Arlovski (34-22 MMA, 23-16 UFC) fight since he was a teenager. Cortes-Acosta, now 32, feels proud of how far he’s come in MMA now that he’s fighting a former UFC champion at Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 234 in Las Vegas.

“When I started MMA, I never thought I would be fighting him,” Cortes-Acosta told MMA Junkie in Spanish. “I thought maybe I would fight other fighters like maybe if I got really, really good, and I would get to fight Jon Jones. But fighting Andrei Arlovski, I never thought about it. I began fighting around 2014, 2015, and I thought in a few years he would be retired, but no. He’s kept going, and now we’re in 2024, and he’s still at it.”

When Arlovski made his professional debut in MMA, Cortes-Acosta was just seven years old and hoping to become a professional baseball player in the Dominican Republic. When Arlovski first became UFC champion, Cortes-Acosta was 12.

Never in a million years did Cortes-Acosta think he would be fighting Arlovski, who’s now 44. He remembers the first time he saw Arlovski fight.

“Imagine, I got a flashback when I was playing baseball in the academy,” Cortes-Acosta said. “I remember one day, all my friends were gathered at the T.V. and they called me over, ‘Hey, come look!’ When I go over, I see this monster fighting in the octagon. I was like, ‘Wow, they’re allowed to go after each other like that?’ I’m talking about when I was 14 or 15 years old, and look at me now.

“I remembered that moment when I got the fight. I feel very proud of myself to be where I’m at and to be fighting him.”

Although Cortes-Acosta respects Arlovski, all that will go out the window the moment they get locked in the cage. He won’t let his admiration for Arlovski stop him from getting his hand raised.

“The psychological and respect fight, all that is thrown out,” Cortes-Acosta said. “In the cage, I have respect for no one. If you’re putting on the gloves to fight me, there’s no respect. Even my own dad, I don’t give him any respect if we were to fight in the octagon. It’s another world in there.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 234.

UFC Fight Night 234 pre-event facts: Jim Miller, Andrei Arlovski look to build on all-time wins leads

The best facts about UFC Fight Night 234, which features chances for Jim Miller and Andrei Arlovski to add to their historic resumes.

After a nearly monthlong hiatus, the UFC opens its 2024 schedule on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 234, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+.

Light heavyweight contenders are set to rematch in the main event of the card. [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] (18-1-1 MMA, 9-1-1 UFC) and [autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 7-4 UFC) will run it back with five rounds scheduled after their originally meeting at UFC 294 in October ended in a no contest due to an illegal knee from Ankalaev that halted the action.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts for UFC Fight Night 234.

* * * *