The first-ever fighter draft for Global Fight League (GFL) unfolded earlier tonight (Fri., Jan. 24, 2025) from inside Van Wagner Studios in Phoenix, Arizona, and fight fans can now check out the official 2025 rosters for all six teams.
It has taking GFL a little longer than expected to put everything in place for a 2025 rollout, but Friday’s draft was the first major hurdle to overcome. The league will feature a total of six teams, which have selected 20 fighters each from a large pool of 420 athletes hailing from 67 countries. This includes former UFC champions, former Bellator champions, and some real legends of mixed martial arts (MMA).
Yes, some of the aforementioned legends probably shouldn’t be fighting.
Unfortunately for the MMA draft broadcast, someone from the GFL media team decided to leak the first 10 rounds of picks for almost all of the six teams. We will update the full rosters when the dust has settled, but for now check out the “leaked” rosters below and let us know which team you think has the best lineup for 2025!
FIRST LOOK at the GFL team’s roster
(via GFL LIVE stream) pic.twitter.com/blCh9E9NF9
— COMBAT SPORTS TODAY (@CSTodayNews) January 25, 2025
Team Dubai
Manager: Cain Velasquez
Coach: Javier Mendez
Pick 1: Tyron Woodley
Pick 2: Abubakar Nurmagomedov
Pick 3: Razhabali Shaydullaev
Pick 4: Ali Isaev
Pick 5: Luke Rockhold
Pick 6: Benson Henderson
Pick 7: Damir Ismagulov
Pick 8: Omari Akhmedov
Pick 9: Tanner Boser
Pick 10: Adilet Nurmatov
Pick 11: TBD
Pick 12: TBD
Pick 13: TBD
Pick 14: TBD
Pick 15: TBD
Pick 16: TBD
Pick 17: TBD
Pick 18: TBD
Pick 19: TBD
Pick 20: TBD
Team London
Manager: Luke Barnatt
Coach: Carl Prince
Pick 1: Gegard Mousasi
Pick 2: Alexander Gustafsson
Pick 3: Josefine Knutsson
Pick 4: Brett Johns
Pick 5: Julia Budd
Pick 6: Ilir Latifi
Pick 7: Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz
Pick 8: Saul Rogers
Pick 9: Danny Roberts
Pick 10: Cameron Else
Pick 11: TBD
Pick 12: TBD
Pick 13: TBD
Pick 14: TBD
Pick 15: TBD
Pick 16: TBD
Pick 17: TBD
Pick 18: TBD
Pick 19: TBD
Pick 20: TBD
Team Los Angeles
Manager: Wanderlei Silva
Coach: Rafael Cordeiro
Pick 1: Sage Northcutt
Pick 2: Aspen Ladd
Pick 3: Tony Ferguson
Pick 4: Urijah Faber
Pick 5: Ilima-Lei Macfarlane
Pick 6: Uriah Hall
Pick 7: Chad Mendes
Pick 8: Andrei Arlovski
Pick 9: Frank Mir
Pick 10: Jessica Penne
Pick 11: TBD
Pick 12: TBD
Pick 13: TBD
Pick 14: TBD
Pick 15: TBD
Pick 16: TBD
Pick 17: TBD
Pick 18: TBD
Pick 19: TBD
Pick 20: TBD
Team Miami
Manager: Thiago Alves
Coach: Conan Silveira
Pick 1: Junior dos Santos
Pick 2: Anthony Pettis
Pick 3: Yoel Romero
Pick 4: Natalia Kuziutina
Pick 5: Philipe Lins
Pick 6: Andre Harrison
Pick 7: Paige VanZant
Pick 8: Cat Zingano
Pick 9: Marlon Moraes
Pick 10: Thiago Santos
Pick 11: TBD
Pick 12: TBD
Pick 13: TBD
Pick 14: TBD
Pick 15: TBD
Pick 16: TBD
Pick 17: TBD
Pick 18: TBD
Pick 19: TBD
Pick 20: TBD
Team New York
Manager: TBD
Coach: Ray Longo
Pick 1: Kevin Lee
Pick 2: Chris Weidman
Pick 3: Holly Holm
Pick 4: Melissa Amaya
Pick 5: Kai Kamaka III
Pick 6: TBD
Pick 7: TBD
Pick 8: TBD
Pick 9: TBD
Pick 10: TBD
Pick 11: TBD
Pick 12: TBD
Pick 13: TBD
Pick 14: TBD
Pick 15: TBD
Pick 16: TBD
Pick 17: TBD
Pick 18: TBD
Pick 19: TBD
Pick 20: TBD
Team Sao Paulo
Manager: Lyoto Machida
Coach: Andre Pederneiras
Pick 1: Fabricio Werdum
Pick 2: Douglas Lima
Pick 3: Carlos Petruzzella
Pick 4: Camila Reynoso
Pick 5: Viviane Pereira
Pick 6: Julio Arce
Pick 7: Maike Linhares
Pick 8: Bruno Cappelozza
Pick 9: Mauricio Rua
Pick 10: Patricky Pitbull
Pick 11:
Pick 12:
Pick 13:
Pick 14:
Pick 15:
Pick 16:
Pick 17:
Pick 18:
Pick 19:
Pick 20:
Stick with Mania for more GFL 2025 roster and fight card news.