Martin posted to his X account to detail the changes the promotion are making, as he revealed PFL will now run traditional weight classes, with championships reserved for the top fighter in each division, rather than the season and tournament champions previously used by the promotion in past years.
In his message, shared to social media as a graphic, Martin laid out the changes.
“Historically, PFL crowned champions through its season or tournament format, where the winner held the title for that year. I recognise this created some confusion about who truly sat atop each division,” he wrote.
“That confusion grew when the PFL and Bellator merged, bringing in not only tournament champions but also legacy Bellator champions who defended their belts, leaving fans unclear on who was the definitive champion in each weight class.
“We are now simplifying our championship system. Going forward, each division will have one PFL World Champion, the single, undisputed titleholder in that weight class.
“You saw this recently when Costello van Steenis scored a last-second win over Johnny Eblen to become the PFL middleweight world champion.”
PFL Update: pic.twitter.com/WLgOMD1GKb
— John Martin (@JohnMartinPFL) September 24, 2025
Martin highlighted a quartet of title fights at their two upcoming events on October 3 and December 13 as examples where PFL world champions will be officially crowned.
- October 3 – Usman Nurmagomedov vs Paul Hughes 2 for the PFL lightweight world championship
- October 3 – Corey Anderson vs Dovlet Yagshimuradov 2 for the PFL light heavyweight world championship
- December 13 – Vadim Nemkov vs Renan Ferreira for the PFL heavyweight world championship
- December 13 – Cris Cyborg vs Sara Collins for the PFL women’s featherweight world championship
“I also know there has been confusion around unique distinctions in the past, like the “Super Fight” title won by Francis Ngannou,” Martin continued.
“That was a special, one-time designation. Going forward, these belts may be used only for occasional special events, and importantly, I will be engaging directly with Francis to determine what’s next for him in the PFL.
“My goal is clear: one champion, one division, one world title – a system that is simple for athletes to chase and for PFL fans to follow.”
After spending the last few years trying to differentiate themselves from the UFC’s more traditional championship model, it means the PFL are now going back to that same traditional model.
It’s a change that is likely to be well received by the fans, and will help establish a degree of importance to PFL’s champions that previously wasn’t there due to the transient nature of their titles.
