Australia’s newest sports boss has unveiled his bold plan to take “brawling” from backyard scraps to a $1 billion global empire – with talks already underway for a team of gutsy, national scrappers to take on the best of America and Great Britain as soon as 2026.
Only eight months after first being conceived by Gold Coast entrepreneur Daniel Mac, the International Brawling Championship is now readying for its first globally televised blockbuster this Friday evening in Brisbane.
Likened to UFC without wrestling, the exciting new league includes several unique elements including shorter rounds, penalising fighters who ‘run’ and even The Final Stand – an intense, all-action component inspired by the iconic UFC 300 finish of Hawaiian legend Max Holloway.
IBC 02: Hardman vs Towns | Friday 28 Nov from 8:30pm AEDT | Issac “Headsplitter” Hardman makes his International Brawling Championship debut against Jordan Towns in his hometown of Brisbane. | Order Now with Main Event on Kayo Sports.
Elsewhere, Mac has also been billed as Australia’s answer to Dana White, and is now vowing to do for brawling what the UFC boss has already done with an MMA empire worth in excess of $15 billion.
Speaking with Fox Sports Australia this week, the IBC founder also unveiled for the first time his plans to host six events annually – split between Australia and the rest of the world – while also outing UFC stars Robert Whittaker, Tai Tuivasa and Justin Tafa as targets.
Plans are also underway for an ‘Anzac Showdown’ between the best fighters from Australia and New Zealand next April, with the promotion also looking to sign up an elite group of NRL toughs and various other crossover fighters.
While eventually planning to build a global roster similar to White’s UFC, the IBC initially plans to create an Australian team that will then travel to take on opponents from around the globe, with a World Cup-style event also being discussed.
And when it comes to the television component, Mac has already secured a deal with 14 broadcasters – including Australia’s Main Event and Kayo Sports – and says there is a strong chance Holloway will be watching on from Hawaii later this week to see what he helped create.
Mac stressed he also plans to make national names of several young fighters who have been competing in backyard events, and says there is “no limit” to the size of purses that will eventually be offered to his biggest stars.
WHAT IS THE INTERNATIONAL BRAWLING CHAMPIONSHIPS?
Dubbed UFC without wrestling, Mac has lauded his hybrid combat sport as a “fusion” of fight precision and brawling energy.
Each bout features four, two-minute rounds.
Just like the UFC, fighters wear four-ounce gloves however compete exclusively with stand-up striking.
There is no wrestling, no knees, no elbows.
The action also unfolds inside a square cage designed specifically by Mac, and measuring only five metres by five metres, to ensure constant engagement between the athletes.
“Because we’ve worked out what fight fans want, and that’s action,” Mac says simply. “All the other bulls***, people are sick of it.
“So we really are changing the script with this.”
Daniel Mac, IBC president.Source: News Corp Australia
Like with professional boxing and most MMA promotions, every round is scored via the traditional 10-9 must system. However in a unique twist, the judging criteria also states a fighter cannot score while punching off the back foot, but only when either moving forward or standing their ground.
“Because,” Mac stresses, “we don’t reward runners”.
Yet undoubtedly the biggest twist to the IBC concept comes thanks to a moment created by the UFC’s reigning BMF champion Max ‘Blessed’ Holloway …
WHAT DOES ‘BLESSED’ HAVE TO DO WITH IBC?
Only last year at UFC 300, Holloway went and created one of combat sport’s most iconic moments when, in the dying stages of his showdown against American Justin Gaethje, he pointed to the centre of the Octagon – demanding the pair throw down.
Gaethje, being who he is, obliged, with the pair then throwing hands until, with only a second remaining, Holloway landed the brutal right hand which not only iced his rival but earned him, in every sense, the Baddest Mother F***er crown.
And it was in this moment that the IBC was effectively born.
“Because I can still remember the goosebumps I got watching on at home,” Mac recounts. “I was sat there telling myself, ‘OK, this is exactly what f***ing fighting is all about’.
“In that moment, Max Holloway created what I believe are the greatest 10 seconds in combat sports history.”
Which is why now inside every IBC cage – right there, smack bang in the middle — a small diamond is painted onto the canvas.
“And it’s here,” Mac says, “where we have The Final Stand.”
Every round from the second on, a fighter has the opportunity to invite his opponent to meet inside the diamond, where the two combatants then go all Holloway versus Gaethje.
As Mac explains it: “From the second round, if both fighters agree, they point to the ground, time pauses, and the arena gets blacked out.
“A large, bright light then shines down onto the diamond, with the two fighters instructed to brawl.
“They can then go for as long as they like, it doesn’t impact the time of that round.”
Mac added there are only two ways The Final Stand can finish.
If a fighter is feeling the pressure, they can step out and get deducted a point – like you would in other fight sports for, say, a knockdown or a foul. The clock then resumes and the round continues on as normal.
And as for the other option?
“Somebody,” Mac says, “goes to sleep.”
WHICH FIGHTERS HAS THE IBC SIGNED?
One of Australian boxing’s most popular knockout artists, Queenslander Issac Hardman, has already signed a five-fight deal with the IBC and will now headline this Friday’s event.
Mac also revealed how, as part of growing the IBC over the next year, he is also looking to target some of Australia’s biggest combat stars – think Whittaker and Tuivasa – while also offering deals to recognised NRL brawlers like Junior Paulo, Nelson Asofa-Solomona, and Reagan Campbell-Gillard.
“I’ve already had discussions with Tai Tuivasa,” Mac said of the cult UFC heavyweight. “And this is definitely his gig, right?
“I’ve also spoken with Justin Tafa and am keen, obviously, to meet with Whittaker.
“I just know this is the perfect platform for them.”
Mac also stressed he eagerness to turn Hardman into an IBC cult hero, much the same way as the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) has transformed American Mike Perry into its poster boy.
Issac HardmanSource: Supplied
The promoter added that he also plans to make household names of young fighters who, most recently, have been competing in backyard events.
“We’re turning these young guys into professional athletes,” Mac said. “Giving them the chance to really get paid, fight on Main Event and Kayo Sports, earn themselves sponsorships, so it really is a no brainer for them”.
Asked what sort of money the IBC eventually plans to offer its biggest stars and the promoter added: “There really isn’t a limit when it comes to where our fight purses get to.”
Eventually, Mac said he sees the IBC boasting an international roster and suggested Holloway could even be watching on this weekend to see, first hand, the fighting phenomenon he has helped create.
“Because I know for a fact that Volk has told him about it,” the promoter said, referencing Australia’s UFC featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski.
“He’s told Max what we’re doing and how The Final Stand was created.
“So who knows what will come of that? We’ll wait and see.”
AUSTRALIA VERSUS THE WORLD?
Mac stressed there is a reason he called this new promotion the International Brawling Championships.
“Because we’re not thinking national,” he stressed, “but global”.
While eventually the IBC plans to have a roster, and events, similar to that of the UFC model, Mac initially wants to create cards where Aussies go take on the best of New Zealand, the US and Great Britain.
In 2026, the IBC is planning for six shows – three in Australia and three more overseas.
“The three fights in Australia will effectively serve as a selection process for the Australian squad,” he explained. “We’ll then have those 10 fighters travel abroad to fight guys from Great Britain, or the United States.
“Or first international show will be in New Zealand next April.
“Australia versus the Kiwis.
“From there, we will then look through the television analytics to see where it makes sense for us to go.
IBC 02: Hardman vs Towns | Friday 28 Nov from 8:30pm AEDT | Issac “Headsplitter” Hardman makes his International Brawling Championship debut against Jordan Towns in his hometown of Brisbane. | Order Now with Main Event on Kayo Sports.
“We might get, say, 300,000 views in Texas. So we could go do our first US show there.
“Then obviously once the roster builds, our format will continue to evolve.
“Eventually, we plan to have something like the UFC roster. But even then we will still look to host a World Cup style event once a year, to find out exactly which country is the toughest.”
Mac tipped brawling would become the fastest growing sport in the world over the next year.
“This was an idea I only conceived in March,” he said. “And the first few people I told, they all said the same thing back to me: ‘you’re f***ing dreaming’.
“Now people are trying to buy in, asking how much I want for it … [laughs] I’ve told them it’s not for sale.”
TAKING ON BOXING & MMA
Mac stressed his new brawling concept isn’t about looking to challenge boxing or MMA promoters.
“I’m not trying to take anyone on,” the IBC boss stressed. “Just as I’m not looking to take anything from anyone.
“This is about starting something different.
“This is brawling.
“We are our own sanctioning body, our own combat sport.
“If anything, I want the other sports to give us those brawlers they don’t want.
“Send your brawlers over to the IBC and we’ll make them stars in a genre where they excel.”
WHEN DOES IT ALL BEGIN?
While the IBC held its first pilot show on the Gold Coast in August, Australia’s newest combat sport really explodes into action this Friday with its first globally televised card inside Brisbane’s Nissan Arena.
The IBC’s hyped Main Event debut will not only be shown live in Australia, but also via broadcasters in New Zealand, America, Israel, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and France.
Other overseas networks and streaming services to have struck deals with the IBC include DAZN and Prime Video, which will offer brawling to a combined 370 million people in USA and Canada.
Issac HardmanSource: Supplied
Asked about the safety measures in place, Mac continued: “For every event I’ve got two doctors, two paramedics and two nurses.
“The IBC also employs a mental health expert who assesses every fighter after they weigh in and then again after they fight.
“And that’s because we realise, early on, we’re going to be dealing with young fighters who aren’t used to fighting in this type of atmosphere, with so much attention and pressure.
“So we want to look after them.”
In 2026, the IBC will host its first domestic show in March before then taking an Australian team across the ditch in April for a Trans Tasman showcase.
‘WHAT THE F*** IS HAPPENING HERE?’
Mac insists fight fans are going to fall in love immediately with brawling.
“Because we’re changing the script,” he stresses. “For the first time ever, people aren’t coming just to see the fighter, they’re also coming to see the brawls themselves.
“Our first show, it was phenomenal.
“Nobody knew much about any of the fighters we had on, but everyone left that arena saying ‘that’s one of the best shows I’ve ever seen in my life’.
“And it’s because we gave them entertainment.
“Come to my show, nobody is on their iPhones.
“Honestly, people aren’t even recording the action because they’re so totally transfixed by what is going on inside that cage.
“You can see the fans thinking ‘what the f*** is happening here?’.
“It’s unbelievable.
“And for someone like myself, having bet it all to make this work, that’s absolutely perfect.
“Because it proves I’m right.”