PFL Introduces Women's Lightweight Division

We’re proud to introduce MMA’s first-ever Women’s Lightweight Division! Meet the 8 women fighting for a world title and $1 million. #IWD2019 https://t.co/gVkofNWa0r

— #PFLmma (@ProFightLeague) March 8, 2019

On the heels of their regular season schedule release yesterday, the Professional Fighters League has revealed the lineup of their women's lightweight tournament roster.

On Friday, which is also International Women's Day, in their official press release the PFL unveiled their eight-woman roster for the newly created women's lightweight division. Eight women from around the world will compete for a $1 million prize, as well as the championship at the weight class. Unlike other weight classes, this roster will consist of eight fighters instead of 12 or more. As the organization will still hold six divisions competing for their respective titles, they have elected to remove the middleweight division and replace it with women's lightweight.

Along with Kayla Harrison, who had already been announced as part of this tournament, the promotion added seven other fighters, including a couple former Ultimate Fighting Championship competitors moving up to lightweight in Sarah Kaufman and Larissa Pacheco. The remaining five fighters are: Genah Fabian, Bobbi Jo Dalziel, Svetlana Khautova, Roberta Samad and Morgan Frier. They will be representing five different countries in this tournament, including two from the U.S., two from Canada and two from Brazil.

President of PFL Fighter Operations and legendary kickboxer Ray Sefo explained in a statement, "PFL is the only major MMA organization with a women’s lightweight division. Fans are going to love this talented group of women athletes competing for a world title and the $1 million prize." He continued, "Kayla Harrison is a US household name and the favorite heading into the season, but she’ll be facing strong competition from around the world, including top fighters from Brazil, Canada, New Zealand, and Russia who want to enforce their will in the cage."

Yesterday, the promotion released their schedule of the regular season, which includes three events on Long Island, New York, and the remaining three in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The PFL also signed a multi-year deal with ESPN recently to air their events on ESPN networks. Like last year, the promotion will have six weight classes competing for their own division's championships in a multi-stage tournament. To qualify for the tournament, regular season performances are given a point system, where fast finishes earn more points than decision wins.

PFL 2019 Women's Lightweight Division Roster:

Kayla Harrison (3-0)
Sarah Kaufman (20-4, 1 NC)
Genah Fabian (1-0)
Bobbi Jo Dalziel (4-0)
Svetlana Khautova (2-0)
Roberta Samad (4-1)
Larissa Pacheco (11-2)
Morgan Frier (4-1)