After much criticism and tons of road bumps, Global Fight League (GFL) will hold its inaugural ‘virtual’ draft live from Van Wagner Studios in Phoenix, Arizona and will include hundreds of notable mixed martial arts (MMA) this Friday, Jan. 24 at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) and we have all of the details.
Where to watch:
The GFL draft will be available LIVE on their official platforms: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitch as well as DAZN, PPV.com, TrillerTV, and Rumble.
On-air talent:
The GFL Draft will feature with insights from MMA analysts and personalities such as Founder Darren Owen, Karate Combat’s Robin Black, TNT Sports reporter Caroline Pearce, CJI roaming reporter Alex Wendling, former UFC play-by-play announcer Mike Goldberg, and former UFC Heavyweight Brendan Schaub,
The Draft:
Over 420 athletes from 67 countries will be in the draft, competing for 120 coveted roster spots to enter the 2025 season.
The roster spots are divided into six inaugural ‘city’ teams: Dubai, London, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and São Paulo.
Dubai is managed by Cain Velasquez and coached by Javier Mendez.
London is managed by Luke Barnatt and coached by Carl Prince.
Los Angeles is managed by Wanderlei Silva and coached by Rafael Cordeiro.
Miami is managed by Thiago Alves and coached by Conan Silveira.
New York is coached by Ray Longo with a manager TBA (probably Chris Weidman).
Sao Paulo is managed by Lyoto Machida and coached by Andre Pederneiras.
Fighters:
Some of the fighters available to be drafted are Tyron Woodley, Paige VanZant, Anthony Pettis, Yoel Romero, Shogun Rua, Luke Rockhold, Frank Mir, Andrei Arlovski, Greg Hardy, Junior Dos Santos, Aspen Ladd, and Marlon Moraes.
Check out the entire list of fighters here.
