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PFL co-owner Donn Davis has made an audacious claim regarding the promotion's upcoming "Battle of the Giants" pay-per-view event, headlined by the heavyweight title fight between Renan Ferreira and former UFC champion Francis Ngannou. Set for October 19 at The Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Davis asserted that the cost of this PFL event will eclipse UFC 306, which took place at the Sphere in Las Vegas last Saturday.
In an interview with The New York Post, Davis highlighted the importance of this event, not only for the PFL but for the entire MMA world.
“First of all, I believe this is the biggest event possible in MMA because of the (main and co-main events) this year, 2024,” Davis said. “That makes it certainly the biggest thing for the PFL. The UFC is the bigger company, and we’re putting on the bigger event. So this is a big deal for us."
The heavyweight clash between Ngannou and Ferreira is only part of the event's appeal. The co-main event will feature a women’s featherweight title bout between reigning champion Larissa Pacheco and the legendary Cris Cyborg, ensuring that the card boasts two blockbuster title fights. In addition to these, fighters like Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen and A.J. McKee will also appear on the card, adding to its overall prestige.
Davis also addressed the financial magnitude of the event, comparing it to UFC 306.
“The cost of this fight is astronomical. Dana White talks about his $20 million Sphere event; this is more. Fighters here make more. The card here has more big fights coming. This cost to us is more than his cost to the Sphere,” Davis explained.
The PFL’s ambition to surpass the UFC in both event quality and financial scale marks a bold move for the promotion, as it seeks to carve out a significant place in the MMA landscape. With Ngannou, Pacheco, and Cyborg headlining a star-studded card, PFL's "Battle of the Giants" promises to be a major event that MMA fans won’t want to miss.
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