The UFC pay structure and salary always becomes a bone of contention, every once in a while. But how much does an average UFC fighter actually earn per fight?
While Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov may take millions of dollars home after every fight, that is not the case with every UFC fighter. Last year, around 36% fighters pocketed less than $45,000. This is an average household income in the USA. But almost the same percentage of fighters earned six figures each for their performances in 2020.
In terms of pay, the Ultimate Fighting Championship differs a bit from other sports. Read on to know how the UFC pay structure works.
UFC Pay Structure And Salary Breakdown
Base Pay: Every fighter receives a base salary for making weight and fighting which depends on several factors, mainly their popularity and the audience they’re able to attract. However, as an independent contractor, they are free to negotiate this base pay. Nate Diaz earned $20,000 base in his fight against Michael Johnson, but he renegotiated this to $250,000 against Anthony Pettis, after he had beaten Conor McGregor.
Sponsorships: UFC signed a lucrative deal with Reebok in 2015, making it the the exclusive sponsor for UFC fighters during fight night. The company pays the UFC, who in turn pays each fighter an amount based on the number of fights they’ve had in the UFC. This pay can range from $3,500 to $40,000 per fight.
Endorsements: This pathway is mostly reserved for the most popular fighters. The more popular they are, the more endorsement money they’ll make. That being said so, it’s hard to land a number as to what the average endorsement deal pays.
UFC Bonuses: These bonuses are awarded at the end of the fight card. Usually, these include Fight of the Night, Performance of the Night, Knockout of the Night and Submission of the Night bonuses per event. These amount ranges from $50,000 to $75,000. UFC also pays its fighters Backroom Bonuses behind closed doors.
Fines: Fighters may also make money through fines. If their opponent misses weight, then they’ll be fined a portion of their salary which usually goes to the other fighter.
PPV Points: Pay-per-view points, are another way for fighters to make millions, though only champions and popular fighters are able to pull this off, akin to endorsement deals. For a fighter, earning these points means that they will receive a small percentage of the money that the audience paid for the pay-per-view.
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