PFL steps into the 'decagon' with new ideas for MMA and Claressa Shields

For almost three decades, the Ultimate Fighting Championship has stood mostly head and shoulders above other entities trying to make a dent in promotions of mixed martial arts.

Backed with a lucrative seven-year deal from ESPN to broadcast their pay-per-view bouts and a rapidly expanding fan base, the UFC is no longer seen as a niche entity. It can command attention for an entire weekend night, with social engagement on par with some of the nation’s biggest sporting events.

The Professional Fighting League, founded three years ago, wants to buck the trend of what MMA fans are used to seeing on a given broadcast. The founder and chairman of the PFL, Donn Davis, says they are not the UFC’s competition, but a complimentary piece in the overall plan to make the sport already more popular than it is.

Donn Davis considers himself a company builder and an entrepreneurial venture capitalist, and started the league as soon as the UFC was sold in 2016 for $4 billion.

Davis says he wants to change how championships are decided, starting with not just throwing two fighters together for the fun of it and equates it to LeBron James being put in the NBA Finals every year because the commissioner felt like it. He says the matchups will be determined by wins and losses not politics or social media.

“I saw a big opportunity that was very underserved. There are 550 million MMA fans. It's the third largest fan base in the world, and they're only getting 40 events a year,” Davis said to USA TODAY Sports. “This isn’t even a sport yet. In a sport, the meritocracy of the athlete controls the outcome. In the boxing or MMA world, a promotor decides who fights for the championship.”

While only new to the game, PFL for now will rely on ESPN’s backing, word of mouth and its touted technology to bring in more fans.

Fans watching the broadcast can see data in real time from the fight, such as how many punches are being thrown from each fighter, who threw the hardest punch and even artificial intelligence showing the fighter that is ahead after each round.

As of now, the judges will not have access to any of that data and will have to use the time-honored tradition in scoring fights: their eyes.

“We are creating a computer model that’s right every time,” Davis says. “And we are going to display it.”

Part of the technology includes the referee wearing a camera, and a “ghost cam,” where the cage will disappear on a television screen when the combatants are wrestling on the ground in order to emphasize the fighters.

SHIELDS' SWITCH:Claressa Shields has conquered women's boxing world. MMA is next.

In terms of actual promotion of fighters, Davis plans on using the talent already on the roster such as Kayla Harrison and possibly the recruitment of others.

The 31-year-old Harrison is a two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo and has won each of her 11 MMA fights to date.

“PFL has real rising stars like Kayla Harrison,” Davis says. “She is a mega-star and an incredible empowerment story for women. She is PFL developed, PFL signed and a PFL star. Some of the biggest fighters will move to the PFL.

While that assertion remains to be seen, another female striker is garnering attention in a style and confidence that’s all her own.

Taking a break from training for her next bout, Claressa Shields likes talking the talk and walking the walk and isn’t afraid to let you know about it.

Shields, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in her own right, albeit in boxing, says she got the MMA bug when talk started swirling around Amanda Nunes and arguments about who the better fighter is.

Nunes hasn’t budged on boxing Shields, but instead said she would “wrestle the (expletive) out of her” whenever the two meet in a MMA cage.

“That lit a fire in me,” Shields told USA TODAY Sports. "I wanted to see how badass I really am. But I am quick learner and it’s going well so far."

Shields, 26, is scheduled to fight Wednesday on ESPN when she takes on Abigail Montes for the PFL championship. She admits she is still green at certain aspects of mixed martial arts and is taking it seriously.

“I had to build up muscles that I haven’t used in a long time,” Shields says. “The grappling was very challenging at the beginning because of how sore I would get. I actually like the wrestling and of course the punching.

She won her MMA debut in June against Brittney Elkin, scoring a third-round technical knockout after holding off multiple submission tries by Elkin.

Even though that was a learning experience, she knows she is years away from earning a title shot where big money on a main event is involved. In the meantime, she has a subtle message for her doubters and future opponents.

“The biggest thing an opponent has to worry about when facing me is that I am coming for fight,” she said. “I am here to whoop your ass. I am coming in here to hurt you. It’s never going to be a fight when an opponent says it was easy and they are not going to want to fight against me again.”

The task now for the fledging PFL is to back up those claims and get athletes such as Harrison and Shields even more recognition than they already have. Davis has said that the PFL wants to have more than 450 hours of content by 2025.

And of course, Shields believes she will be front and center when that happens.

“I'm the one to boost up the PFL because I have accomplished everything in boxing. I can be a monster inside of the ring and a beauty outside of the ring,” said Shields, who is currently the women’s undisputed boxing champion at junior middleweight. “I am not afraid to be myself. People want to see me fight. “

“The thrill here is to see one of the greatest ever,” Davis added. “And try to get another sport that is a hobby. And try to conquer another sport. Not as a hobby, not as a sideshow, but to become one of the best ever in that second sport. It’s going to be a great thing to watch.”