FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH's ZOLTAN BATHORY acquires stake in PROFESSIONAL GRAPPLING FEDERATION
30-01-2024
FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH founding guitarist Zoltan Bathory enters another arena with an ownership stake in the Professional Grappling Federation (PGF). Promising jiu-jitsu fans a thrilling sixth season with a grand prize that’s music to the ears, Bathory‘s investment into PGF heralds a seismic shift in the grappling world, marking the beginning of the $100,000 grand prize era.
The Professional Grappling Federation is set to launch its most thrilling season yet in Las Vegas on April 21, 2024. Season 6 elevates the competition to new heights with a record-breaking $100,000 grand prize and the involvement of some of the most legendary names in the sport, including Roger Gracie, Andre Galvao, Eddie Bravo and Jeff Glover as team captains.
PGF founders Brandon McCaghren and Keelan Lawyer welcomed two new partners to the ownership group by joining forces with Bathory, founder and guitarist of globally renowned rock band FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, an actively competing jiu-jitsu black belt and celebrity ambassador for the sport, and his partner Heather Grace Gracie, president of Gracie Fight Management. Heather is the granddaughter of Carlos Gracie, one of jiu-jitsu’s founding fathers and a prominent member of the Gracie fight dynasty. The newly enhanced PGF leadership team is committed to creating a lasting legacy and establishing PGF as a pivotal platform for showcasing the sport in a league format.
Bathory says about the partnership: “As one of the owners of Epic Roll, a popular jiu-jitsu gear manufacturer, and also as a competing jiu-jitsu black belt, I have been deeply immersed in the jiu-jitsu culture, striving to be the best ambassador I can be for the sport. Probably for this reason, I was invited to be one of the team captains in PGF‘s Season 5.
“I have been training in martial arts since I was nine years old, so I have seen my share of competitions, but the format of PGF really impressed me. It was fast-paced, gentlemanly violent and very entertaining. I fell in love with the organization and wanted to become more involved because I knew Heather (Gracie) and I could really help them to change the face of jiu-jitsu for both competitors and the audience. We aspire to build a path for grapplers to become paid professionals, while embracing a format that’s entertaining for everyone, not just the grappling connoisseurs.”
Las Vegas is set to be the perfect stage for this groundbreaking season of high-stakes jiu-jitsu tournament. PGF introduces some new formats and enhanced fan engagement opportunities, making the competition even more dynamic and accessible to a broader audience. Athletic performance combine, live auction draft picks, a gauntlet of matches each day, and a season finale featuring the top eight performing athletes round out the full week of non-stop action.
The season begins on April 21, 2024, in Las Vegas, promising a five-day live-streaming marathon of an electrifying mix of sportsmanship and showmanship. With a legendary lineup of Team Captains and twenty elite competitors, PGF Season 6 is not to be missed.
For more information, visit www.PGF.world.
FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH will embark on a full European tour of headline dates as well as festival appearances next summer, bringing its latest album, “Afterlife”, and all the band’s classic hits to the most iconic stages across 20 European countries between May and July 2024. The tour also coincides with the European portion of METALLICA‘s “M72” tour on which FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH continues to tour stadiums around the world as special guest.
For the headline dates of the summer tour, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH will bring along ICE NINE KILLS as special guest. The latter band has cemented itself as one of modern metal’s most vicious forces with its current album, “The Silver Scream 2: Welcome to Horrorwood”. ICE NINE KILLS will also be featured on the 2024 lineup of the ongoing METALLICA “M72” world tour.
FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH 2024 tour dates:
May 23 – London, OVO Arena, UK
May 26 – Munich, Olympiastadion, DE *
May 28 – Zurich, Hallenstadion, CH
May 29 – Milan, Idays Festival, IT **
May 31 – Plzen, Metalfest Open Air Plazen, CZ **
Jun. 01 – Vienna, Rancino Rocks, AT *
Jun. 03 – Hannover, ZAG Arena, DE
Jun. 05 – Solvesborg, Sweden Rock Festival, SE **
Jun. 06 – Trondheim, Trondheim Rocks, NO **
Jun. 09 – Helsinki, Olympic Stadium, FI *
Jun. 11 – Tallin, Unibet Arena, EE
Jun. 13 – Kaunas, Zalgiris Arena, LT
Jun. 16 – Copenhagen, Parken Stadium, DK *
Jun. 18 – Frankfurt, Festhalle, DE
Jun. 19 – Amsterdam, AFAS Live, NL
Jun. 21 – Dessel, Graspop Metal Meeting, BE **
Jun. 23 – Ferropolis, Full Force Festival, DE **
Jun. 25 – Oberhausen, Rudolf Weber-Arena, DE
Jun. 26 – Esch-Sur-Alzette, Rockhal, LU ***
Jun. 29 – Zilina, Topfest, SK **
Jul. 04 – Bucharest, Metalhead Festival – 20 years aLIVE, RO
Jul. 07 – Warsaw, PGE Narodowy, PL *
Jul. 09 – Budapest, Barba Negra, HU
Jul. 14 – Madrid, Estadio Civitas Metropolitano, ES *
* METALLICA support
** Festival dates
*** No ICE NINE KILLS
“AfterLife” is FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH‘s first album with its latest addition, renowned British virtuoso Andy James, who replaced Jason Hook in 2020. James was previously featured on “Broken World”, a song that was included on the second installment of FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH‘s greatest-hits collection, “A Decade Of Destruction – Volume 2”, which came out in the fall of 2020.
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