Dan Hooker would like to see the whole ‘BMF' championship put to rest for now.
MMA
UFC veteran speaks about the future of GFL in MMA
Published
2 years agoon
L (photo Brandon Magnus/Zufffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)British UFC veteran Brad Pickett In a recent interview with the Global Fight League “All Smoke & Mirrors” Grosvenor Sport.
GFL has met with great skepticism over the past few months, but last night he announced the inaugural weekend of events (May 24th-25th) in LA, which is very excited about fans.
Weighing the debate about the fresh concept, Pickett discussed:
- Challenges that GFL will try to repeat the success of the UFC
- Questions about the format of the league and teams and its long -term aspirations
- Reveals how the league contacted him and remained frustrated by them
“It’s all smoke and mirrors” UFC veteran says in the Global Fight League
We talked about some competing promotions and the monopoly that UFC has. What do you think about GFL that appeared out of nowhere? Did you contact this to get involved?
Brad Pickett: In a sense, it’s all smoke and mirrors until something happens. They signed all these warriors, I am surprised that they did not receive any insurance for any of these warriors, some of these guys are appropriate.
For me personally, you can’t just throw money on something and expect that it will be a success day by day. UFC was not built overnight; It took years of demanding work to build this brand. You can’t just buy a few fighters and expect to repeat the UFC model. It won’t work like that. It’s tough. This can probably happen, but you have to build something with time, they did nothing else, it was only MMA, but sold a little differently.
It’s the same, but it’s a bit more complicated. They try to sell these aspects of the band, trying to encourage people to support the team, I understand this, but there is not even one local warrior on the London card. What do they think? They try to sell this aspect of the team and can encourage wealthy people to buy and support these teams, but it doesn’t make much sense.
Did they ask you for commitment? Because when you look at the London team, there is Gustafsson, who is Swedish, Mousasi, who is Dutch, and everyone is in the London team.
Brad Pickett: I talked to several different people, not directly, but by others. I had some contact, but as I said, at the moment it’s all smoke and mirrors. Nothing really happens. I had several guys who were to be signed with them, and they live and train in London. They were just bypassed, which irritated me a bit.
You may like
MMA
Arman Tsarukyan sets one condition for fighting Alexander Volkanovski
Published
17 hours agoon
November 3, 2026
Tsarukyan is open to fighting Alexander
Volkanovski, provided
Ultimate Fighting Championship gold is at stake.
Volkanovski (29-4) defended the featherweight title with a
technical knockout victory over Movsar
Evloev at
UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi before expressing interest in returning to
lightweight. With champion Justin
Gaethje uncertain about his future, Volkanovski offered to face
Tsarukyan (24-3) for the vacant title if Gaethje retires.
Arman Tsarukyan reminds Alexander Volkanovski how Islam
Makhachev rematch ended
Tsarukyan said the championship matters more to him than the
opponent.
“I'm ready for everyone,†Tsarukyan told Yavuz Saynomo. “For me, it
doesn't matter who I'm gonna fight; I just want to fight for the
title.â€
Volkanovski has expressed confidence that he can counter
Tsarukyan's wrestling and avoid being held down. Tsarukyan
responded by recalling the Australian's knockout loss to Islam
Makhachev.
“He said Islam Makhachev cannot knock him out, too,†Tsarukyan
added.
Volkanovski has twice challenged Makhachev for the lightweight
championship. He lost their first meeting by unanimous decision
before Makhachev finished their rematch with a head kick and
follow-up punches.
Tsarukyan remains confident that his next bout will be for the
title. If Gaethje retires, “The Batman†expects to compete for the
vacant belt.
“I have a title fight next,†Tsarukyan reiterated. “Either Justin
Gaethje. If he is retired, someone else.â€
MMA
Dan Hooker blames Charles Oliveira, UFC for tarnishing ‘BMF’ title: ‘He killed it’
Published
18 hours agoon
November 3, 2026
The symbolic title is up for grabs again on Dec. 12 at UFC 335, when champion Charles Oliveira faces Diego Lopes in the main event. Oliveira won the belt with a dominant decision win over Max Holloway at UFC 326, but received criticism for his grappling-heavy performance, which was considered to be against the spirit of the BMF belt.
Hooker agrees that Oliveira, and his newly won title, lost some luster that night.
“It was cool for a bit and then he kind of made it not cool,†Hooker told Submission Radio. “I think he killed it.â€
The BMF championship was innovated by former UFC star Nate Diaz, who cut a fiery promo after a win at UFC 241 that led to he and Jorge Masvidal fighting to become the inaugural titleholder at UFC 244, where Masvidal defeated Diaz. Justin Gaethje later defeated Dustin Poirier for a vacant title, with Holloway subsequently claiming the belt with an all-time great performance at UFC 300.
Hooker believes the promotion has strayed far from the original purpose of the title.
“You know where they f*cked it up?†Hooker said. “They should have kept it like Nate Diaz, Masvidal kind of shit. They completely f*cked it when they were like – They had badass motherf*ckers fighting for it like that, but then it should be the guys that want to throw down and just talk shit as well. That was kind of like me, Bobby Green, could lose 20 times and he's still a BMF contender. Then they had Max do it, and he's like the nicest guy in the f*cking world.
“Talk shit. Say you're going to knock the other guy's head off, that was like our belt. That was the guys whose careers are a f*cking mess. ‘Gamebred' was hot and cold for a minute, Nate Diaz, all our records are a f*cking mess. It's going to be a lot harder for us to get our hands on the nice, shiny, clean one. That's what I'm saying, they let too many nice guys have a crack.â€
That said, Hooker looks forward to the Oliveira vs. Lopes matchup, even if the BMF belt's involvement feels perfunctory. Hooker fights Brian Ortega at UFC Qatar on Nov. 21, and if both he and Lopes are victorious, he sees a scenario where he challenges Lopes for the title next.
“For some reason, they're adamant on this BMF belt sticking around and just having another belt to put up for grabs, but yeah, I like that fight,†Hooker said. “I feel like Diego Lopes is a strong contender for that. As he says, he doesn't feel like he's going to get another crack at Volk. He doesn't feel like it's just around the corner, so I like the fight, definitely.â€
“That's why I wanted this fight [vs. Ortega],†Hooker continued. “I feel like I can beat Brian Ortega, but now, Diego Lopes beating Charles Oliveira, I feel like that's a much bigger ask. But yeah, I like that fight, for sure.â€
MMA
Report: Jacqueline Cavalcanti vs. Michelle Montague postponed to UFC 335 on Dec. 12
Published
1 day agoon
November 2, 2026
Terence Crawford Sets Sights on Ryan Garcia at 160, Overlooks Boots Ennis
David Benavidez Critiques Canelo Alvarezs Waiting Game in Mbilli Fight Performance
Jake Paul Bets on Doumbés Retirement: A Bold Move in Boxing
Trending
-
Boxing2 days agoTim Bradleys Honest Assessment of Christian Mbillis Performance in Canelo Alvarez Defeat
-
Boxing2 days agoShakur Stevenson Analyzes Canelos Decision Victory Over Christian Mbilli for WBC Title
-
Boxing2 days agoTyson Fury Unleashes Wilder KO Strategy to Overcome Anthony Joshua
-
Boxing2 days agoLester Martinez Aims for Canelo Alvarez with BoMacs Support
-
MMA1 day agoReport: Jacqueline Cavalcanti vs. Michelle Montague postponed to UFC 335 on Dec. 12
-
Boxing1 day agoExploring Who Can Challenge Canelo Alvarez at 168: Beyond Terence Crawford
-
Boxing1 day agoTerence Crawfords Interim Champion Eyes Canelo Showdown After Mbilli Victory
-
MMA1 day agoOn To the Next One: Matches to make after controversial UFC Vegas 123 event


