Liz Carmouche and Jena Bishop are set to run it back in Chicago, this time with history on the line. The two rivals will headline PFL Chicago on Friday, October 16 at Wintrust Arena, where the promotion will crown its first-ever PFL Women’s Flyweight World Champion. The event is one of the first major showcases since the Professional Fighters League’s landmark merger with Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), signaling the start of a new era in women’s MMA and big-fight production.
Against that backdrop, Carmouche (26-8) and Bishop (11-3) meet again with a historic belt at stake. Their rivalry dates back to last year’s PFL World Tournament finals, when “Girl-Rilla” stopped Bishop with a third-round TKO after landing a decisive hook. Now Bishop gets her chance at redemption in a five-round title fight that doubles as a statement bout for the newly merged organization’s women’s flyweight division.
Carmouche remains one of the sport’s true pioneers. She made history in 2013 by facing Ronda Rousey in the UFC’s first-ever women’s bout and has since captured titles in both Bellator and PFL. The former Marine has won 13 of her last 14 contests, with 10 finishes, and enters Chicago looking to add another championship strap to an already stacked résumé.
Bishop, meanwhile, brings elite grappling credentials into the rematch. A BJJ black belt, former IBJJF No-Gi World Champion, and ADCC World Championships veteran for Team USA, she owns seven submission victories in her 11 career wins. Since the loss to Carmouche, she has surged back into contention with consecutive first-round submissions, including a dominant finish of previously undefeated Borena Tsertsvadze.
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Inside the MVP–PFL Merger and the Launch of MVP MMA
On July 30, 2026, MVP and PFL announced a transformative merger to create a unified global combat sports powerhouse under the MVP master brand. Co-founded by digital superstar and combat sports entrepreneur Jake Paul, who will serve as a board member and help lead brand strategy alongside co-founder Nakisa Bidarian, the new entity is positioning itself as a direct challenger to the UFC’s industry dominance.
The move combines PFL’s established athlete roster and event infrastructure with MVP’s massive marketing reach and recent streaming momentum on platforms like Netflix. Under the new structure, the PFL will transition and rebrand as MVP MMA by January 2027, while MVP Boxing will continue as a distinct, standalone property under the same promotional umbrella.
With the inaugural PFL Women’s Flyweight World Championship on the line and the merged MVP–PFL era taking shape, Carmouche vs. Bishop in Chicago offers both fighters a chance to make history as the division’s first champion—and to plant an early flag for MVP MMA’s future.