The Professional Fighters League unveiled its first three fight cards of the 2019 regular season, which kicks off May 9 at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.
PFL 1, broadcast on ESPN+ for the prelims and ESPN2 for the main card, marks the return of Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison (3-0), who will square off against Russia's Svetlana Khautova (2-0).
Former Invicta FC bantamweight champion and UFC standout Sarah Kaufman (20-4-1) will join Harrison as part of the promotion's lightweight tournament and fight Morgan Frier (4-1). The next two events will also take place at Nassau Coliseum on May 23 and June 6.
PFL 2 features a slew of new featherweight contenders -- Jeremy Kennedy (13-1), Chris Wade (14-5), Andre Harrison (20-1) and Freddy Assuncao (10-1) -- vying to take the title from defending champion Lance Palmer (17-3).
PFL 3 will see last year's heavyweight champion, Philipe Lins (14-3), face Satoshi Ishii, an Olympic judo gold medalist with a 20-8-1 career MMA record. Jordan Johnson (10-0), who went 4-0 in the UFC, makes his PFL debut against Maxim Grishin (28-7-1).
"In the PFL, there is no undercard, every fight counts," PFL president of fighter operations Ray Sefo said in a release. "Every fighter on our roster enters the regular season knowing that if they win, and score maximum points, they will enter the postseason with a chance to compete for a PFL Championship and $1 million.
"The journey begins at PFL 1, 2 and 3. These are tone-setting fights and fans will see quality, action-packed matchups featuring the best fighters across six weight divisions from over 14 countries around the world."
The PFL has a different format than other fighting organizations. Rather than individual fights, PFL uses a season-long format in which competitors gain points for wins and bonus points for early finishes. The highest-ranked fighters at the end of the regular season fight in the playoffs for a chance at $1 million.