Latest news with #GlobalFightLeague
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tony Ferguson goes off on 'washed up' criticism for Salt Papi fight: 'That's more fuel for my fire'
Tony Ferguson is ready to turn over a new leaf as a boxer. One of the most beloved MMA fighters of the past decade, Ferguson moved on from the UFC after his August 2024 fight against Michael Chiesa. The former interim lightweight champion initially planned to kick off 2025 by sticking to MMA with a matchup against Dillon Danis for the startup Global Fight League (GFL) promotion, however the GFL hit a snag prior to its debut events and now appears to be dead. Ferguson hasn't given up on his combat journey though, as "El Cucuy" instead shifted his focus to professional boxing. He's set to meet Nathaniel "Salt Papi" Bustamante at Misfits Boxing 22 on Aug. 30. "With the GFL and everything that was kind of going on, it was hit and miss," Ferguson said. "We would get a date and we would get a location, then nothing. Something would fall through. "I told Lloyd [Pierson], my agent, 'Hey, we've got to stay busy.' We reached out, we did some networking and made this happen [with Misfits]. "I've been wanting to box since I was little, and I was never allowed," Ferguson continued. "My dad said, 'You're going to have to play a sport where you can get a scholarship, and you can go do that because I'm not going to pay for that s***.' I wasn't able to box with UFC. Nothing against that. The focus was all on that. Now I get to put shoes on, I get to put on boxing gloves, and I get to not worry about other things I used to not worry about. This is fun because it's a whole new sport." Ferguson, 41, has been on a rough stretch since compiling one of the greatest runs in UFC lightweight history — a 12-fight undefeated streak from 2013 to 2020. The former interim champ has since lost eight straight, and parted ways with the UFC having set a new promotional record for its longest losing skid. Boxing will be a new foray for him, but Ferguson's violent striking style was a staple of his MMA game throughout his rise to prominence. And the chirping has already begun, as Ferguson and his debut opponent attended Wednesday's Misfits Boxing 22 pre-fight press conference in London. "I saw this guy face to face — he did not talk about knocking me out face-to-face," Ferguson said of Bustamante. "He didn't say the same thing when I was in front of him. I made sure I sized my hand up with his, and I made sure that he understood where I was coming from, that I'm not f***ing joking around. He has eight fights underneath his belt. I have zero [in boxing], but I'm going to take that one and it's going to be mine. "I'm excited because my weight has been low. I've been keeping it [low] instead of 200, 205, where I'm usually comfortable. Pops gave me the best recommendation when GFL was on the way — keep your weight low, so that way you don't have to keep making weight all the time and fluctuating weight. So I've been at 175 [pounds] steady, f***ing hungry and I'm ready to go. ... I don't f*** around." Despite going winless over the past six years, Ferguson's confidence doesn't appear to have wavered one bit. Instead, he's fueled by the new opportunity. And though the MMA community has pleaded with "El Cucuy" to call it a career, it's only motivated him further to pursue what he believes he's capable of. "90% of the f***ing comments out there are saying that I'm washed up, I'm old, and I should f***ing retire and all this other bulls***," Ferguson said. "They're saying that because they can't f***ing do this s*** that I'm doing. It's crazy. The other 20% is saying that 'Salt Papi' is going to knock me out. So 100% of you b****es are out there hating on me. You know what? That's more fuel for my fire. "I wouldn't say I feel completely disrespected because this age group is completely different, right? I'm talking to dudes that are interviewing me that started watching me when they were five, now they're 23. I'm old. I'm 41 years old and halfway to 82. When it comes down to it, I'm still moving like I'm f***ing young, and I'm not going to quit moving, dude. I've been doing this since I was four or three years old."
USA Today
23-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Ex-UFC fighters Tanner Boser and Vinicius Moreira co-headline UAE Warriors 60
Ex-UFC fighters Tanner Boser and Vinicius Moreira co-headline UAE Warriors 60 A pair of UFC veterans will co-headline UAE Warriors 60. Light heavyweights Tanner Boser (21-10-1) and Vinicius Moreira (14-8) square off June 13 at Space 42 Arena from Abu Dhabi and airs on UFC Fight Pass. A person with knowledge of the matchup informed MMA Junkie of the news but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Boser became a free agent after completing his contract with the UFC in 2023. He was headed to the Global Fight League where he was drafted to Team London, but after GFL was forced to cancel their first scheduled events, he opted to stay active elsewhere. The 33-year-old Canadian hasn't competed since defeating Aleksa Camur at UFC on ESPN 50 in August 2023. Meanwhile, Dana White's Contender Series alum Moreira has stayed busy since failing to notch an octagon win in four attempts. After getting released from his UFC contract in 2021, the Brazilian went 5-3, but he's on a four-fight winning streak. He captured the Jungle Fight light heavyweight title with a submission of Andre Miranda this past October.
The Independent
10-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
GFL cancels first two events as uncertainty swirls around future of new MMA promotion
The GFL has reportedly cancelled its first two events, as the new MMA promotion struggles to get off the ground. The Global Fight League, which launched earlier this year, signed numerous former UFC fighters before announcing it would stage its first two cards this spring. The original plan was seemingly to open their inaugural season in April, but the opening events were delayed until 24 and 25 May – and now they have been cancelled entirely, per Uncrowned and MMA Fighting. California State Athletic Commission executive director Andy Foster confirmed the news to the outlets. Tony Ferguson, Urijah Faber, Alexander Gustafsson, Holly Holm and Anthony Pettis were among the many UFC veterans due to compete in Los Angeles. Chad Mendes, Paige VanZant, Thiago Santos, Renan Barao and Derek Brunson were also set to be involved, among others. It is unclear whether the events in question will be rescheduled or the GFL's opening season has collapsed entirely.
USA Today
10-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Global Fight League's inaugural back-to-back events in May canceled
Global Fight League has canceled its first pair of scheduled events. GFL was set to officially launch its inaugural fight events on May 24 and May 25 at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. California State Athletic Commission executive director Andy Foster confirmed with MMA Junkie the events have been canceled. Details surrounding the cancellation were not given. Combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani initially reported the news. According to Helwani, the promotion's future as a whole is uncertain. GFL slated 30 fights across its inaugural two-day extravaganza, evenly split between the pair of fight cards. The event on May 24 slated matchups such as Urijah Faber vs. Renan Barao, Anthony Pettis vs. Benson Henderson, Holly Holm vs. Julia Budd. The event on May 25 was to feature matchups including Tony Ferguson vs. Dillon Danis, Ovince Saint Preux vs. Alexander Gustafsson, Uriah Hall vs. Douglas Lima, and Paige VanZant vs. Randi Field. GFL touted a team-based format and held its first-ever draft in January, placing its UFC-veteran-heavy roster on squads representing Dubai, London, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and Sao Paulo.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Urijah Faber 'wasn't really looking for a fight,' but GFL is paying 'big dollars'
Urijah Faber has at least one more fight left in him — and it won't be in the UFC. Absent from competition for more than five years, "The California Kid" revealed on Uncrowned's "The Ariel Helwani Show" that his contract with the company expired due to inactivity. The 45-year-old UFC Hall of Famer said he hasn't been much of a target for other promotions throughout his MMA absence, but when the Global Fight League (GFL) emerged as a new player in 2025, Faber was offered a chance at redemption against his old rival Renan Barao. They're now set to collide for the third time as GFL's first main event on May 24 in Los Angeles. Advertisement "I wasn't really looking for a fight," Faber said. "When they offered Barao or the possibility of Barao, that sounds fun to me. He's also a guy that has two wins over me. He's a guy that doesn't necessarily — we didn't have a perfect meet-up both times. It wasn't like it was scheduled and this and that. Like the first time [in 2012], he was a fill-in for Dominick Cruz. The second time [in 2014], I was a fill-in for Dominick Cruz. He's got two wins over me. I wasn't super happy with the way the last one went. The preparation, the call at the end of it and everything else. "I've got all these guys doing these crazy things to test themselves as they've gotten older, and for me, this seems like a perfect opportunity," Faber continued. "On top of that, it's risk vs. reward. These guys are paying real money. And at this point in your career, been retired for five years, I've stayed super active as a competitor by grappling against the world's best. I've been in the gym every single day, mentoring, rehashing my techniques, breaking down film, and passing on to the next generation. Fifteen minutes is easy for me, man — I could fight 15 minutes in my sleep. I'm excited to get in the greatest health of all time, but now with a purpose." Faber's hiatus has essentially been a second retirement without ever officially calling it that. The former WEC featherweight champion initially retired in early 2017 while still a contender in the UFC bantamweight division. He famously returned in July 2019 to score a 46-second finish of Ricky Simon in a Sacramento homecoming. Advertisement The Simon win launched Faber into a title-contender bout with future UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan. Faber suffered a third-round knockout loss, and since then has been primarily focused on his Team Alpha Male gym. "I didn't really have any offers come through," Faber said. "I wasn't really asking for a fight, as you know. I stayed really busy. I'm in this business group, Entrepreneurs Organization, and one of my guys in there, Tyler Smith, has all of our team except for me in that group on this health kick, like he calls it the 'GHOAT,' the greatest health of all times. He's launching this business called and so I've been staying in the testing pool my entire time with the UFC. I had that one little moment where they talked about me and Cub Swanson having a fight, but nothing ever got really talked about. I talked to Cub about it a couple times. We thought it was going to happen, and he was like, somebody told him, 'Oh, Urijah's not going to really fight.' But no one really offered me the fight. I'm not looking for a fight. Advertisement "In the time I've been retired — I mean, I think I retired, I was No. 6 or No. 7 in the world, came out of retirement, had two fights. I think I've done like 10 competitions throughout that time, mostly jiu-jitsu, some combat jiu-jitsu. This last year I did a match against Bibiano Fernandes out in Abu Dhabi, then I did a match with Jeff Glover, both world champions. Just staying busy and stuff." The regimen Faber followed involved a variety of tests, ranging from blood to saliva, as well as checking things like his testosterone levels — something he'd never done. As a result, Faber discovered he had the natural testosterone levels of a 27-year-old. On the other side, Faber's trilogy dance partner Barao has been on a break of his own, having last fought in October 2023. It's been tough sledding for the former UFC champion ever since his UFC title fight loss to TJ Dillashaw 11 years ago. Barao is 2-8 in his past 10 fights, and will look to snap a six-fight losing streak against Faber on May 24. Faber vs. Barao 3 will be the first main event in GFL history. Despite all the unknowns and uncertainty surrounding the new promotion, including a broadcast deal, Faber is confident things will work out. Whether this will be a one-and-done deal for the MMA legend remains to be seen. Urijah Faber still wants to get one back on Renan Barao. (Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports) (USA TODAY Sports / Reuters) "The biggest thing for me is I'm not the type of person that tells somebody they can't, and I truly believe that [GFL founder] Darren Owen believes in himself," Faber said. "So whether I believe him or anyone else believes in him, you believe in him, doesn't really matter. We'll know when the first show happens. Advertisement "I've talked to [California State Athletic Commission executive director] Andy Foster, who's in communication with him. He's leading the commission in California. They're taking some precautions to make sure things are up to par. I'm already getting myself into amazing shape, even prior to hearing this. And what do I love to do? I love to fight. I love to be a competitor. So he's got some big goals and a unique setup. I think the first show is going to be big. He has this first show go through, everybody gets paid, and things go the way he says they're going to be, I think that we're looking at something that has some legs. "I've had a chance to talk to [Owen] one-on-one about what his real goals are," he continued. "For me, I don't like things that are in spite of UFC. I have a lot of respect for the UFC. I have so much gratitude to the leadership there, even had conversations with the leadership priority to accepting this thing, and even though I wasn't under contract, and just making sure that it's something [OK]. ... It's not like something that's trying to bring [the UFC] down, necessarily. It's creating more opportunities for fighters, and there's some big dollars involved. That's great for fighters. If I can get opportunities for my guys in the future, that's great. Whether this idea works out, I don't know, we're yet to see."
