PFL MMA: How to win an MMA PFL Fight in 2021 [April 2021]

SPONSORED

How are PFL fights scored? Read to learn more. Watch PFL fights live on Thursday, April 29th at 9 pm ET on ESPN2!

How to win an MMA PFL Fight in 2021

Ever wonder why your favorite MMA fighters keep coming back to the ring year after year? Because they know it’s what leads to a win.
But how does one reign triumphant in this highly competitive league? After a group of investors bought the World Series of Fighting in 2017, they revolutionized the feel and style of the fighting league, including instituting an equalizing tournament-style championship bid which is more accessible to fans and fighters alike.
Because each fighter duels only twice per regular season, they get more time to recover while allowing the league to allocate more funds for each fighter rather than distributing them amongst a bloated roster determined by rank. No more unequal matches and tired fighters.
Even though the structure of the tournament bracket is quite simplified, the scoring of the matches can still be confusing. Here’s some guidance on the PFL’s match rules for 2021 to prepare you for this year’s matches.

The Basics of a PFL Match

Fighters participate in three, 5-minute rounds with a 1-minute rest period between them. An overall victory results in three points, a tie one point, a loss 0 points.
The post-fight rankings are determined by points earned for victory, as well as bonuses added for knockouts and submissions.

Total-Knockout (TKO) / Stoppage

A TKO means that a fighter fully impairs their opponent so much that they cannot continue to fight in a match. This is also called a “stoppage”, and results in 1-3 bonus points, depending on the round, as well as the 3 points for the victory.
According to the 2021 Official Rules and Regulations, if a fighter finishes a round, but cannot return for the beginning of a new round, the fight is called off by TKO in between rounds.

Walkovers

A walkover is when, for whatever reason, one fighter is awarded the victory in a match because of their opponents inability to compete in a match. This could be due to injury, or the opponent not making weight. The eligible fighter receives 3 points while the ineligible fighter receives zero.

Tiebreakers and Draws

In a match with a draw, one point is awarded to each fighter. As the playoffs commence, tiebreakers for points in the league are more complicated and are decided by a variety of factors such as: number of regular season fights, number of finishes, winning percentages and, as a last resort, a coin toss.
That’s it! Now that you’re an expert on PFL scoring, you have no excuse not to tune into the nail biting regular season competitions. The Main Card fights start at 9 pm ET (6 pm PT) on Thursday, April 29th for Welterweights and Thursday, May 6th for Heavyweights and can be viewed live on ESPN2. Tune into ESPN+ starting at 5:30 pm ET (2:30 pm PT) to view all the fights from a single night. With competition this tough, you never know what the final score will be.

At Insider Envy we only promote products we love. We participate in a small number of affiliate programs, meaning we may receive compensation when you buy items after clicking a link on InsiderEnvy. We appreciate your support!

by Insider Envy Staff

x
This site uses cookies to help us serve you better. By continuing to explore our site, you accept our use of cookies. ✓ Accept
x
Welcome back! This site uses cookies to help us serve you better and we have updated our Privacy Policy since your last visit. By continuing to explore our site, you accept our use of cookies. ✓ Accept