What is the lowest paid UFC fighter?
The UFC's minimum is $12,000 per fight, with a win bonus of another $12,000. So a first-time UFC fighter who wins his or her debut will make at least $24,000 for that fight. And if he receives a post-fight bonus, it could go to $75,000.
The fighters usually sign a contract for a certain amount of fights for a fixed amount of money each time they step inside the Octagon. The three tiers are low, medium, and high, with the lowest earning between $10,000 and $30,000 and the highest Tier ranking between $500,000 and $3,000,000 per fight.
To conclude, an average fighter cuts 15-20 lbs, although more and more fighters cut upwards of 30 lbs. Even some heavyweight fighters cut weight to make the heavyweight limit, such as Derrick Lewis and Mark Hunt.
Each fighter signs a contract for a certain amount of fights, and they are paid a fixed amount of money each time they step inside the Octagon. Payouts from fighting range from a starting $10,000 to as much as $3,000,000.
The fighters usually sign a contract for a certain amount of fights for a fixed amount of money each time they step inside the Octagon. The three tiers are low, medium, and high, with the lowest earning between $10,000 and $30,000, and the highest tier raking in between $500,000 and $3,000,000 per fight.
Conor McGregor is the highest-paid UFC fighter. Twenty different fighters have at least $5 million in career earnings.
Fighters get $10K while ring girls make $70K - Uriah Hall blasts 'f—ng ridiculous' UFC pay scale.
“Most UFC fighters make more than boxers, especially at a lower level. Then, the guys, you know, the Khabibs, the Conors, the Rondas, you know, even the Jon Joneses, these guys make more than most of these (boxers) that are fighting for big title fights.
Yes, professional boxers get paid whether they win or lose a fight. In almost all cases, both fighters will receive compensation regardless of the outcome.
'McGregor is the most underpaid fighter in history what he gets paid to fight versus the value he has brought to UFC, ESPN and MMA. ' Paul has called out UFC president Dana White before over the amount of money his fighters have picked up.
Why do UFC fighters get paid little?
The reason UFC fighters are paid so little compared to boxers is because boxers are protected under the Ali Act. MMA fighters are not protected under the Ali Act.
Indeed, because of the nature of their work, MMA fighters are often hit by the taxman from all fronts and forced to pay taxes not only in their home state and country, but also in the state or country where they fight.

McGregor's loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021 was only his fourth UFC fight since 2016, but he remains mixed martial arts' biggest star. He banked an estimated $33 million for the Poirier fight. His previous fight against Poirier, in January 2021, earned him an estimated $22 million.
They get a percentage of the pay-per-view buys. And the money is spread out amongst all the fighters." UFC pays fighters around 20% of its revenue, according to data unearthed during the ongoing antitrust lawsuit brought by some former fighters against the promotion.
In 2022, fighter compensation tallies out at about 19 to 20 percent, a number that's been consistent for 11 years, according to Forbes. The base pay for a UFC athlete is $12,000 to show and $12,000 to win — a number many see as too low for the ultimate proving ground and one that White doesn't plan on changing.
If a UFC fighter misses weight at the first weigh-in, the athletic commission will give them up to two hours to make the weight. But if they fail again at the second weigh-in, the bout will likely turn into a catchweight fight. The fighter who missed weight may forfeit up to 30% of their purse.
As of 2011, the UFC does pay for medical bills for UFC fighters, including injuries sustained from their fights as well as from injuries they may have sustained during their training for the actual fight. The UFC will typically only cover medical expenses for injuries suffered from fight-related activities.
Her first fight for any MMA promotion was for Strikeforce, with Rousey taking home just $8,000, however that number was up to over $3 million in her final fight for the UFC. It's safe to say that money isn't to be sniffed at, although only few will become big enough to earn such large fees. Does WWE pay more than UFC?
And UFC has also been the more profitable of the two in recent years. Last year the fighting promotion posted an EBITDA of around $160 million, or 27% of revenues; WWE had operating income of $62 million.
In January 2022, Rousey was among the top 20 richest MMA fighters with US$12 million net worth.
How much do UFC refs make?
A UFC referee can earn from $500 to $2,500 per fight. This varies on their experience level, as an entry-level referee should receive a minimum pay of $500 per bout, while a veteran referee, like Herb Dean and Marc Goddard, bags a whopping $2,500 per fight.
It's theirs.” With the a yearly subscription fee of $99.99 in addition to 13 pay-per-view events at $74.99 each, the annual cost to consume the entire UFC schedule without any discounts applied is more than $1,000.
In short, UFC fighters fight around 2 or 3 times per year on average. Unranked to low-ranked fighters who are working their way up the ranking may fight up to 5 times in a single year, while top-ranked fighters usually fight once per year.
Floyd Mayweather built his fortune through the sport of boxing. The man is one of only a few top-ranked boxers in history that finished their career with an undefeated record. As his success in boxing grew, so did his team and his brand image, founding "The Money Team" (TMT) in 2007 as a 12-time world champion.
As in boxing, the design of each promotion's belts are the same regardless of weight class, and the champion keeps their belt after losing the title.
Only the top 1% of all professional boxers earn more than a million dollars per year, the lowest 10% of all professional boxers earn less than $19,220 per year.
Every fighter has a base salary they receive for making weight and fighting. As The MMA Guru explains, the base amount depends on several factors. Each UFC fighter is considered an independent contractor, and they're free to negotiate with the UFC on the base pay.
$8.6m a minute in 2021.
Fighters in boxing are involved with multiple promoters, organisations and TV networks across various different countries, while MMA centres mainly around the UFC and is limited to certain viewerships. Bellator is the next biggest behind the UFC but the top dogs basically hold a monopoly on talent.
Do UFC fighters get bonuses?
UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions occurred.
Amateur boxers (annually) | Beginning Pro boxers (annually) |
---|---|
Low: >$19,225 | Low: $22,000 |
Median: $35,584 | Median: $51,370 |
A beginner boxer (boxing, kickboxing, etc.) can earn up to $4,000 per fight or $10,000 in the medium range on average.
But could (or would) a mixed martial artist be a successful boxer? The money in boxing is unquestionably higher than it is in the UFC/Mixed Martial Arts industry. The top boxers can get paid multi-millions of dollars per fight, whilst top UFC fighters get paid a mere couple of hundred thousand.
Conor McGregor is the highest-paid UFC fighter. Twenty different fighters have at least $5 million in career earnings.
Yes, professional boxers get paid whether they win or lose a fight. In almost all cases, both fighters will receive compensation regardless of the outcome.
This means they control how much those on their roster are paid. Whereas in boxing, a number of organisations create competition for talent. This can result in bidding wars and an increase in pay, meaning boxers end up earning more.
McGregor's loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021 was only his fourth UFC fight since 2016, but he remains mixed martial arts' biggest star. He banked an estimated $33 million for the Poirier fight. His previous fight against Poirier, in January 2021, earned him an estimated $22 million.
According to long time boxing promoter (and brief MMA promoter) Gary Shaw, "Boxing purses are higher because we don't have a league. UFC is their own league and they appoint their own champion who is going to fight for the title. Everything is done within while in boxing we have different sanctioning bodies."
Is 35 too old to start MMA?
There is no age limit to start training MMA. Regardless of how old you are, there are many reasons why you should start doing MMA. If you decide to get yourself into MMA at an older age, you will soon feel better, be in better condition, fell younger, meet new people and be mentally stronger.
Floyd Mayweather's career earnings
Against Miguel Cotto in 2012, Mayweather made about $45 million per The Sports Daily. Against Canelo Alvarez, he made about $73 million. His disclosed paycheck against Conor McGregor was $100 million. In his fight against Tenshin Nasukawa, Mayweather reportedly made $9 million.