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The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is undergoing significant changes for its 2025 season, marking a departure from the signature $1 million payouts for divisional champions. Since its inception, the PFL has prided itself on a season-based format, offering some of the sport's biggest disclosed paydays. However, this cornerstone of its identity is being reimagined.
Under the new structure, season champions will no longer receive a $1 million prize. Instead, they will earn a $500,000 bonus in addition to their contracted fight earnings leading up to the championship bout. The recognizable oversized $1 million cardboard checks may still appear, but the amounts written on them will be halved.
The league is also discarding its regular season points system, which previously determined playoff qualifications and seeding. In the old format, fighters earned three points for a win, with up to three bonus points available for finishes based on the round. Now, the PFL aims to simplify its approach and focus on other priorities.
This overhaul will lead to a more prospect-oriented regular season, creating opportunities for up-and-coming fighters to showcase their skills. Meanwhile, the league’s bigger stars will be featured in prominent standalone events rather than progressing through the traditional season framework.
These changes come in the wake of the PFL’s recent absorption of Bellator’s roster and the introduction of super fight titles, won by Francis Ngannou and Cris Cyborg in 2024. The move aims to balance the league’s growing emphasis on high-profile talent with the cultivation of future contenders.
The adjustments to the PFL’s format were confirmed by sources familiar with the league’s new contracts, although the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. The news was first reported by Al Zullino on social media.
Since 2018, the league has completed six full seasons, each with six divisional champions claiming $1 million prizes. The 2024 season marked a turning point, with six new champions crowned under the existing system.