PFL chairman Donn Davis explains why he launched Patricio Pitbull, addresses Bellator fighter grievances

PFL isn’t seeking to maintain fighters beneath contract towards their will.

Earlier this week, PFL made waves asserting main modifications to their group however Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull remained disgruntled after calling out the promotion out and requesting his launch. In response, PFL Founder and Chairman Donn Davis honored Pitbull’s request, giving him his unconditional launch from the promotion. It’s a choice Davis defined whereas chatting with Mike Heck throughout a City Corridor session with MMA Preventing.

“Full respect for Pitbull,” Davis stated. “No person’s completed extra for Bellator, the corporate we acquired than he did. You even noticed that in our social media submit. Most fights, most wins, greatest model of a fighter in Bellator historical past. Complete respect, level one.

“Complete respect, level two, we wished him right here. So we had been making an attempt to work out a means for him to be right here. Had he requested his launch for a number of months? No. We had been engaged on a means for him to be right here for a number of months. However for a number of weeks had he stated, ‘I don’t assume it’s going to work out and I need to go’? Sure. So why did, finally, I do it? As a result of he didn’t need to be right here.

“That is about alternative. PFL is about alternative. Alternative for followers who need extra MMA or completely different MMA. Alternative for fighters who desire a completely different means and a special strategy from a special firm. It’s alternative, that’s all. We wish individuals who need that chance. He stated, ‘Look, I wouldn’t go anyplace apart from the UFC. However can I’ve that chance?’ We stated positive, completed. Nothing greater than that.”

Nonetheless, Pitbull says this isn’t precisely how issues performed out. After Davis’s interview, Pitbull one once more went on Twitter to answer the PFL Chairman, giving his facet of issues.

“Hello [Donn Davis], let’s maintain issues true all the best way. You by no means formally provided me the battle with [Aaron] Pico, and I by no means stated no. Pete [Murray] informed my administration that Pico was the primary selection however he may be hitting free company and in that case you’d discover another person. Additionally…

“You by no means stated ‘battle for us this one time and we’ll allow you to go.’ You stated my 15 years in Bellator supplied worth for them and now you wished me to supply worth for PFL. And Pete stated you’d train each authorized proper you guys needed to forestall me from going to the competitors.”

PFL acquired Bellator in 2023, with designs on changing into the “co-leader” in MMA together with the UFC, however its first yr with Bellator fighters beneath contract was rocky. Although there have been a number of marquee occasions, Pitbull was not the one high-profile Bellator fighter to take situation with PFL.

Bellator champions Patchy Combine and Corey Anderson, amongst others, have spoken out concerning the lack of fights provided by their new promotion. However Davis says typically issues are a bit of extra difficult than they could appear.

“Most of those conditions are grey, they’re not black and white,” Davis stated. “So relating to Patchy, relating to some other fighter, we at all times need to resolve the state of affairs. We at all times need to be completely happy. Fighters at all times need 10 fights a yr and each battle to be $10 million. We think about all fighters collectively.

“Keep in mind, my job is PFL. My job is to placed on 30 nice occasions a yr. My job is to handle 250 fighters for essentially the most success for the 250 fighters. That’s my job. The truth is, that’s what followers type of pay me to do, or else PFL gained’t achieve success. 30 occasions, 250 fighters, business success, and the most effective and most nice fights we will. That’s the job of the chairman of PFL. In order that’s what I attempt to do each hour of each day.

“The fighter’s job is to advocate for themselves. High greenback, most fights, what they need in the present day. These are the dynamics. That’s at all times what’s happening. … However particularly, we would like each fighter right here who desires to be right here.”

And if a fighter doesn’t? Pitbull was granted his launch, however what if extra Bellator fighters ask to be let go to allow them to pursue greener pastures within the UFC?

Effectively, Davis actually hopes it doesn’t come to that however stands by what he stated.

“I consider sure [Patchy Mix will stay with PFL this year],” Davis stated. “I believe Patchy goes to be completely happy, I believe Corey Anderson goes to be completely happy, I believe fighters are going to be very, very completely happy. However as soon as once more, in the event that they’re not, we’re going to assist them get the answer they need that’s not right here. This isn’t MMA jail camp, that is alternative camp. So if fighters don’t need to be right here and so they consider they’ll do higher elsewhere, it doesn’t assist us to have them right here. It doesn’t assist us. We have now a pipeline of unimaginable fighters. …

“Patchy is a star. We love him. I would like him right here. Another fighter, we would like him right here. Am I tremendous assured that this noise is a blip and this noise will go away? I’m. However may there be one other fighter that’s sad and desires to go? There may be and we’ll accommodate that.”