MMA News: ONE Championship, PFL Snubbed As BRAVE CF Receives Best Promotion Nomination Nod

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) remains the No. 1 mixed martial arts (MMA) organization, but it has since seen some tough competition around the world.

The Professional Fighters League (PFL) and Bellator MMA are giving the UFC a run for its money in the United States, while ONE Championship is the most dominant promotion in Asia.

On the other hand, BRAVE Combat Federation has taken a hold of Europe and the Middle East.

BRAVE CF has been one of the world’s top MMA companies, praised for its unique approach towards growing the sport.

The promotion has signed over 500 mixed martial artists from 70 nations as it remains true to its goal of building MMA talent from the grassroots level.

In recognition of what it has achieved thus far, BRAVE CF is nominated for two major citations at the prestigious 13th Annual World MMA Awards hosted by Fighters Only Magazine.

The Bahrian-based fight league joins the Best Promotion of the Year category with the UFC, Bellator, Legacy Fighting Alliance and UAE Warriors.

However, PFL and ONE Championship didn’t make the list, which was put together by the award-giving body’s panel of industry experts.

All promotions were hit hard by the worldwide pandemic, but ONE Championship was able to resume operations late last year as it held most of its events in Singapore.

Meanwhile, PFL made its return last April in a state-of-the-art bubble at the Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

BRAVE CF also had to cancel some of its scheduled events at the start of the global health crisis but was able to bounce back a few months later with shows in Slovenia, Romania, Sweden and Bahrain.

The promotion also made strides in Europe this year as its hosted fight cards in Russia, Belarus and Italy--with another show happening in Konin, Poland on September 25.

Apart from the company itself, BRAVE CF president Mohammed Shahid is likewise one of the five candidates for the Leading Man of the Year award alongside UFC head honcho Dana White, MMA agent Ed Soares, IMMAF chief Densign White and Bellator boss Scott Coker.

Voting for the 13th Annual Fighters Only World MMA Awards is now underway on its official website. It will conclude on Wednesday, September 8th.

ONE Championship will be airing its pre-taped ONE: Battleground II on Friday, August 13, where UFC veteran Zhang Lipeng squares off with Filipino superstar Eduard Folayang.

PFL will also be having the live broadcast of their playoffs on ESPN on the same date, featuring the welterweight clash between former UFC title contender Rory MacDonald and Hawaii’s very own Ray Cooper III.

BRAVE CF will be returning to Almaty, Kazakhstan on August 21st to hold BRAVE CF 53, where hometown hero Nurzhan Akishev is slated to face South Korea’s Tae Kyun Kim in the main event.