PFL head cheese Donn Davis claims UFC CEO Dana White is “worried” about the Bellator MMA acquisition that was finalized earlier this week. Not only because it combined two talent-rich rosters, but also because it positioned PFL as the co-leader of MMA.
Or maybe Davis just wants White to rebut and keep the dialogue going among UFC fans.
That’s according to UFC welterweight Matt Brown, who is not buying what Davis is selling. In fact, the “Immortal” knockout artist — ranked second behind Derrick Lewis for the all-time record — believes PFL will remain a “distant second.”
“If I go to Walmart and someone recognizes me, and their brother asks who I am or their sister asks who I am, they’ll say, ‘He’s an Ultimate Fighter.’ They don’t say he’s an MMA fighter,” Brown told MMA Fighting. “He’s an ‘Ultimate Fighter.’ It’s like a Kleenex or a Q-Tip. That’s just what it is. UFC owns the sport. He’s trying to get Dana to react, I’m guessing, to get more clicks or views or more eyes on it. Dana probably won’t even react. It is completely irrelevant.”
Kind of like an unranked fighter winning their UFC debut and then tweeting, “CoNoR mCgReGoR dOn’T wAnT nOnE oF tHiS sMoKe.”
“I think it’s good for the sport, it’s cool they’re making moves,” Brown continued. “They’re coming up and they’re doing good things. Both of them seem like good organizations. It’s just hard to believe they’re ever going to compete with the UFC. So it’s great to have something else out there that’s still a good quality product, something that’s going to give the fans something else to watch. They’re never going to be the co-leader. They’re a distant No. 2, that’s what it is.”
For much more on the PFL-Bellator MMA acquisition click here.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania