Everyone Knows Boxing Pays More Than UFC -- Or Does It?

Filed under: Boxing, Fighting, MMA, MMA/BoxingWhen heavyweight champion Randy Couture left UFC, he did it because he said his pay wasn't commensurate with his contributions to UFC. And since then, he has frequently talked to the media about the way UFC pays far less than boxing. But Kevin Iole has a great piece at MMA Junkie that delves into the actual pay earned by boxers and UFC fighters. And the bottom line is that when you consider that UFC awards bonuses and allows fighters to sell ad space on their trunks, the pay is actually better than most people realize.When Frank Mir beat Brock Lesnar, for instance, his base pay was only $40,000. But he got a win bonus of $40,000, a submission of the night bonus of $60,000 and $85,000 from the companies whose logos appeared on his shorts. All in all, $225,000 for that fight was an impressive haul, and more than any other promoter would have paid him to fight Lesnar.Couture is a smart guy, and if he thinks he can make more money outside UFC than he can in it, he's probably right. But Couture is one of very, very few MMA fighters who can make more outside UFC -- and he wouldn't have gotten to that position without the promotion he got in UFC.Permalink | Email this | Comments more...