Kayla Harrison was undoubtedly one of the biggest names in the freelance market this year in mixed martial arts.
According to ESPN, the fighter has signed the most lucrative women’s contract in the history of the sport with the Professional Fighters League, although the terms have not been publicly disclosed. It is a multi-year agreement.
I spoke with Harrison’s manager @AliAbdelaziz00who said “the PFL stepped up in a big way and Kayla is now the highest paid women’s mixed martial artist ever. I want to thank everyone who was involved in getting the deal done and in particular, Peter Murray and Ray Sefo.”
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) March 8, 2022
Harrison (12-0) received offers from Bellator and the UFC, but the PFL had the rights to match any offer.
The double Olympic champion in judo has already won the PFL lightweight tournament twice, earning her a purse of $1 million, and she will therefore try to repeat the feat.
She has beaten her last 5 opponents before the limit, and 10 of her last 12. She earned her most recent second-round submission victory over Taylor Guardado to be crowned champion in October.
Fights against Cris Cyborg in Bellator and against Amanda Nunes in the UFC were highly anticipated.
“I’m not saying I’m the best in the world, but I want to be,” Harrison told The MMA Hour, yesterday, with Ariel Helwani. “It’s been a long break since October, it seems like an eternity. I’m glad it’s almost over, to be able to get back in the cage and keep getting better at what I love. »
The 2022 PFL season will begin in April.
