Archuleta Question’s PFL ‘Vision’ After Bellator Acquisition

“Listen, if you want a true global martial arts promotion, dude, I’m your guy. Hello. I’m getting ready to fight in Japan.”

Juan Archuleta has the mixed martial arts (MMA) world in the palm of his hand ahead of 2024.

The newly minted RIZIN Bantamweight champion is set to defend his title against former titleholder, Kai Asakura, at RIZIN 45 in Saitama, Japan on Dec. 31, 2023. To fight in the promotion, Archuleta struck a deal between RIZIN and his longtime home of Bellator to work collaboratively.

In the time since Archuleta began fighting overseas at the end of 2022, however, Bellator has been acquired by Professional Fighters League (PFL). Therefore, “The Spaniard” is now free to venture around within three organizational platforms, which may be extra necessary with PFL excluding the Bantamweight division from its tournament format in 2024. Ultimately, that remains less of a problem for Archuleta should he remain the RIZIN champion on New Year’s Eve.

“I don’t think he sees the vision that could possibly transpire with me winning this belt and the next steps going ahead,” Archuleta told MMA Mania on BROADENED HORIZIN, reflecting on his brief chat with PFL Founder, Donn Davis. “I wrote him and I said, ‘Listen, if you want a true global martial arts promotion, dude, I’m your guy. Hello. I’m getting ready to fight in Japan. I hope you can make it.’ He said, ‘Oh, we’ll see.’ It’s like, bro, we’ll see? You have to go to Japan. [Former Bellator President] Scott Coker’s gonna be there, [Former Bellator Executive] Mike Kogan’s gonna be there.

“If you consider yourself a martial artist and consider yourself as having the best roster now and I’m a champion of a different organization while signed under your organization … If you don’t see the vision of me possibly having three different promotion titles at one time,” he concluded. “Like, dude. I guess it has to be his own idea or something.”

The news of PFL absorbing Bellator broke as recently as the week of Thanksgiving (Nov. 20, 2023), which was months after Archuleta won his current title via unanimous decision against Hiromasa Ougikubo at Super RIZIN 2 in July 2023. Initially, the 36-year-old veteran was worried about whether the RIZIN deal he was on would hold due to its inclusion of working with Bellator.

After a potential Asakura win in the RIZIN 45 main event, Archuleta will assess his next moves between the options in front of him. Before he became champion, Archuleta recalled being promised a shot at the new Bellator Bantamweight kingpin, Patrick “Patchy” Mix, a match up that would make sense with the aforementioned lack of a PFL tournament in the division. Additionally, Archuleta is the only man to have defeated the rising superstar Mix in his 20-fight career. If that doesn’t happen, there’s always the possibility of pursuing titles in other weight classes as he historically did during his King of the Cage days from 2016 to 2017.

“I’m not sure what he (Davis) has planned because I’ve tried to plant the seed, so to speak,” Archuleta said. “We’re gonna see what happens. First I have to take care of business.

“I’m super excited for the merger,” he continued. “Luckily for me, I can fight at 145, 155, 135. For me, the sky is the limit and I’m not afraid of anyone that steps in the cage with me. I’m gonna go out there and perform. The capabilities there sound tremendous, they sound like they’re awesome. It sounds like he’s for the fighters.”

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BROADENED HORIZIN Ep. 33 AUDIO – 以下の日本語版: