In what can only be viewed as a major move by the
Professional Fighters League, Jake Hadley
parted ways with the
Ultimate Fighting Championship and now finds himself entered in
the PFL 2025 World Tournament. The 28-year-old Hadley holds an 11-4
record, with wins in the UFC,
Dana White’s Contender Series and Bellator
MMA to his credit.
Plenty of rewards could await Hadley, so long the necessary pieces
continue falling into place. The PFL’s decision to introduce a
bantamweight division for the first time afforded the Englishman a
golden opportunity and provided the promotion with a potential
piece around which to build. Hadley has his sights set on the
$500,000 grand prize and tournament championship, as he prepares to
face Matheus
Mattos in a bantamweight quarterfinal at
PFL 2025 World Tournament First Round 2 this Friday at
Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. It marks his first
appearance since exiting the UFC.
“When I left the UFC, I had a lot of options,” Hadley told
Sherdog.com. “I had promotions coming to me with contracts, but
I’ve had some sort of relationship with the PFL because I fought
with Bellator in the past. I’ve had teammates who fought with PFL
and I’ve watched the PFL, because I’m a fight fan before I’m a
fighter. I’m happy about the choice I made, even more so being put
in the tournament. I believe the PFL has some of the best fighters
in the world outside the UFC. You could even argue they have some
who are better than [those on] the UFC roster.”
Hadley believes he can help grow the PFL brand, alongside other top
European talents.
“It’s good for there to be other promotions where guys can make
decent money and bring decent money to the promotion,” he said.
“You don’t want a monopoly in this sport. People who could get
stuck in the UFC will be there but may not make the money or get
the opportunity they’re hoping for throughout their career, so it’s
good to have another avenue. There are guys like Paul Hughes
who didn’t even go to the UFC. He just went straight to the PFL,
and it has worked out well for him. It’s good to have other
promotions that give fighters opportunities and for the fighters to
take that promotion to the next level, as well.”
Though he steps back into the spotlight having lost three of his
past four bouts, Hadley understands the weight of the opportunity
with which he has been presented.
“The $500,000 would be life-changing,” he said. “I’d be able to buy
a home. There’s a lot I could do with that money. The belt would of
course make me the No. 1 guy in the world arguably. That’s been my
goal my entire career—to be the top guy in the world—and winning
the tournament would put me in the conversation, which is where I
want to be. I feel like I’m going to be fighting the best guys in
this tournament. The money is the biggest thing I want, but the
belt would be nice to add to my collection. The belt would be
something I could look back at 30 years from now and say I was the
first-ever PFL bantamweight world tournament [winner]. It’s part of
history.”