PFL president Ray Sefo knew he hit the jackpot when he landed Fabricio Werdum . After testing free agency, Werdum (24-9-1) opted to sign a contract to join PFL’s heavyweight division for the upcoming 2021 season, where he’ll spend the final chapter of his career. Considering his name value and accolades in the sport, Sefo knew he had to jump at the opportunity to sign the former UFC heavyweight champion, who PFL CEO Peter Murray dubbed as the “Tom Brady of MMA.” “Once I knew he was becoming a free agent, obviously I hassled Ali about it and Ali had a few other offers on the table, but I’m just thankful that we were able to work it out and finalize this deal, so it was awesome,” Sefo told MMA Junkie. “I’m super happy about it.” Werdum has taken part in numerous tournaments before under both the PRIDE and Strikeforce banners, but has never competed twice on the same night in MMA competition, which Sefo thinks played a factor in swaying him to sign with PFL, with the promotion’s end-of-season playoffs offering that challenge. “The one thing that he’s really excited about, and it goes back to the old days, but he was talking about doing the ‘two fights in one night’ thing and so that kinda got him excited and of course a few other things that we were able to offer him from what I understand, it wasn’t possible elsewhere,” Sefo explained. “So that kind of solidified the deal for him and of course the fact that he’s on ESPN and the fact that he gets to stay home as well so I think there are a lot of factors that came into that persuaded him to sign with us.” Werdum will now join the likes of former Bellator welterweight champion Rory MacDonald, former UFC lightweight Olivier Aubin-Mercier and standout wrestler Bubba Jenkins as the newest additions to the PFL roster.
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Ray Sefo explains how PFL’s unique format proved crucial in signing Fabricio Werdum – MMA Junkie