Ex-UFC Heavyweight Justin Willis Signs With PFL
Former UFC heavyweight competitor Justin Willis has inked a contract with the Professional Fighters League (PFL) for its third season.
MMA Fighting confirmed the news, which was originally reported by MMA Junkie. Willis, 32, is expecting to make his PFL debut in May or June. Willis had a very controversial release from the UFC last year, as he was apparently cut after declining a fight with Walt Harris at UFC on ESPN 4.
Even after his release from the UFC, Willis found himself going back-and-forth with the likes of UFC heavyweight Tai Tuivasa. Willis claims he was fighting for a job that he was wrongfully let go of while guys like Tuivasa were only on the roster because of the country they’re from.
”The last time, I was trying to save a job that I knew was taken from me unjustly, especially when you have guys like Tai Tuivasa, who loses three times in a row, and he obviously can’t fight, and he’s still in the UFC for the simple fact that he’s from Australia,” Willis said.
Willis finds the PFL’s tournament style of doing things more appealing than the UFC’s way of doing things, which is more star-driven. The former UFC heavyweight adds that favoritism doesn’t get you far in a promotion like PFL either, as you have to win your way to the top. Willis is hoping that a heavyweight tournament win will take him to the next level of his fighting career.
”In the UFC, there’s a lot of picking and choosing and favoritism,” Willis said. “It’s not all about who can fight the best. It’s about who can shuck and jive the best. But this is the fight game, not the light game. Places like the PFL have it right, and god willing, me winning this will put me on a different level.”
What do you think about Willis inking a contract with the PFL?
