Money isn’t everything says the person with tremendous amounts. They pay gap between employee and manager/supervisor/head of an organization is huge. The people at the top reap the rewards while the ones doing the grunt work make scraps. That’s what it’s like for the average Joe like you and me.
It’s no different in sports. Not everyone is paid the same and some can make riches beyond their wildest dreams while others try to gather whatever crumbs they can.
Fighters in the UFC can make decent money. To someone normal like us we can view it like it’s huge sums of money but to the athletes themselves, it’s not quite enough. In fact, several UFC fighters have openly complained about the amount of money they make per fight.
When compared to boxing, UFC fighters may not seem like they make a lot of money but in boxing there is only a certain percentage of fighters that make big bucks. Lower class fighters in both sports may still be working a 9-5 while training for a fight. When you compare the two sports wages overall though boxers make more money and the guys over at the UFC want in on the action.
UFC President Dana White has often spoken out about his fighters pay and to those complaining about it. “This is mine and this is the way we’re doing it.”
So it’s his way or the highway.
If you were to bring up boxers pay to White he won’t hold back. In fact he thinks boxers get paid way too much.
“Everybody wants more money,” White said on The Pivot Padcast. “One of the big problems with boxing too, is that all those fucking guys are overpaid, and every time they put on a fight, it’s a going-out-of-business sale. We’re just trying to get as much fucking money as we can from you guys, and then we’re out of here. We’ll see you in three years.”
According to White that is not how you build a business/brand. That is why the model the UFC uses works for them but would not work in boxing.
“You can’t build a league like that. You can’t build a sport. You can’t have 750 fighters under contract, making money, feeding their families every year, with that kind of mentality. It doesn’t work. You have to run a business.”
I like White and the UFC but it is a something he will have to look at one day. Many of his fighters have tried reaching out to fight some of the top names in boxing. McGregor fought Mayweather, Usman is trying to fight Canelo and Ngannou may fight Fury. All in search of a “payday.” If the top UFC fighters were stacking cash the way some of the biggest names in boxing were they would not be seeking opportunities elsewhere.
