The Professional Fighters League (PFL), the fastest growing and most innovative sports league, has announced the addition of Jeremy Piven to the judging panel of tonight’s PFL Challenger Series debut at Universal Studios, in Orlando, FL, featuring fighters in the Light Heavyweight division. Piven joins a panel which includes Tyron Woodley and Ray Lewis.
Together, the three will combine for one third of the vote for the fighter who will earn a PFL contract, while the fan vote will also amount to one third of the vote. Ray Sefo, PFL’s President for Fighter Operations will represent the tiebreaker given any differentiating views between the fan and celebrity vote.
Piven is a three-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe winning actor, playing such iconic characters as Ari Gold on the hit series, Entourage. Piven has acted in film, TV and has created some of the most memorable characters over the course of his career.
“The Professional Fighters League is delighted to welcome Jeremy Piven as a celebrity panelist for the debut of tonight’s PFL Challenger Series,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray. “We’re excited to have the league return to action and with Jeremy, Ray Lewis, and Tyron Woodley manning the first judging panel, we know there will be no shortage of entertainment on the night.”
Following a breakthrough year that saw 100 percent audience growth, PFL has accelerated its momentum in the early part of 2022 with a multi-year renewal with ESPN, generating widespread buzz around the upcoming Challenger Series on Fubo Sports Network, and adding several leading brands to its blue-chip sponsorship portfolio.
Professional Fighters League is the No. 2 MMA company globally and features an elite talent roster with 25 percent of its fighters independently ranked in the top-25 of the world, including 2021 PFL champions Ray Cooper III and Movlid Khaybulaev. PFL has live event coverage in 160 countries on leading distribution platforms and delivers a unique, innovative product to the more than 600 million MMA fans globally.
About Professional Fighters League
Professional Fighters League (PFL) is the fastest growing and most innovative sports league. PFL is the #2 MMA company worldwide and the only with the sports-season format where individual fighters compete in Regular Season, Playoffs, and Championship.
PFL is primetime in the U.S on ESPN and ESPN+ and was broadcast and streamed live worldwide last year to 160 countries with partners including RMC Sport, FPT, Sky Sport, and more. The PFL roster is world-class, with 25% of PFL fighters independently ranked in the top 25 in the world. The PFL proprietary SmartCage data and analytics platform powers real-time betting and provides next-gen viewing experience.
PFL has over two-dozen blue-chip brand sponsors such as Anheuser-Busch, IBM, GEICO, DraftKings, Bose, Socios.com, Air Force Reserve, US Marine Corps, and more. PFL is backed by major investors including Ares Capital, Luxor Capital, Elysian Park Ventures, Swan Ventures, Knighthead, Legends, and several NBA, MLB, and NHL team owners.
MMA is the growth sport of this decade, with 600 million fans worldwide, the youngest audience demo of any sport, and true global revenue streams.