MMA Junkie reports a partial list of salaries for Saturday’s much anticipated UFC 148. Tito Ortiz will make $250,000 while Forrest Griffin could make up to $275,000 if he beats Ortiz.
Anderson Silva will make $200,000 with no win bonus and Chael Sonnen will make $50,000 with the opportunity to make another $50,000 if he wins.
Ortiz will make a flat $250,000 and Griffin will make $150,000 to show and $175,000 for winning.
The other salary information released by the Nevada State Athletic Commission was Cung Le earning a flat $150,000 and Patrick Cote making $21,000 to show and $21,000 to win.
Payout Perspective:
The payouts exclude the PPV upside for those fighters that will receive a portion of the revenue. Interesting that Sonnen will only make a base of $50,000 while Le will make three times as much. The payout is a significant drop from Le’s $350,000 base at UFC 139.
I hope Chael is getting a PPV cut. I have never seen a fighter get a PPV cut with such a low contract and a win bonus. This reported pay suggest he is still on a old contract back when he wasnt a draw and had no leverage. I would hate to think Chael did all this work promoting this fight and making this such a anticipated fight and not get handsomely compensated. Im not one to care what fighters get paid. But this is one case where we all can agree Chael deserves more than 50K/50K on a PPV believed to sell 1 million PPVs.
Can anyone confirm that a reasonable assumption might be that Silva gets $2 per PPV buy, and Sonnen gets $1 as the challenger? I believe I’ve seen that clause elsewhere, and this is a numbered PPV event with a defending champ… but there was also some buzz about Silva getting a larger offer due to the change in venue away from Brazil.
Most headliners get anywhere from $1.50 – $3.00 per buy according to what I’ve heard from sources. The longer you’re a proven draw the more that escalates. I’ve heard that Anderson is getting $5.00 per buy for tonight’s events and that Chael is getting $1.50 per buy. That’s far from gospel but, since TFS asked, that’s what I’m hearing. Also, headline fighters can get substantial sponsorship dollars that more than cover their training camp expenses. Then of course there’s show money and the potential for possible discretionary bonuses. MMA is like any other type of entertainment in that a small percentage of performers make the vast majority of money.
I have never heard of anyone getting $1 or $150 for a PPV buys. All the numbers i hvae ever heard have all been $2 but the point at which they kick in seems to be different. Couture back in the day had different stages and his was below $2 but only for the first few 100K buys. Once it got past the typical UFC buys rate of like 300K it went to like $2. Overeem gets $2 but only of PPV past 500K. I would say the ones with leverage like GSP, Brock, Silva etc are getting a cut of the total PPV buys not just above 500K. But i would be suprised if anyone is getting $5.
“But this is one case where we all can agree Chael deserves more than 50K/50K on a PPV believed to sell 1 million PPVs.”
“i dont like th eidea of the fighters getting a part of the revenue because they are only pulling that money away from the sport.”
Random Dumbass
A fighter getting a cut of the PPVs is not the same as fighters getting a 50/50 revenue share of the UFC. If you cant understand the difference maybe someone with more time will explain it to you.
Dont worry about Chael, Dana gave him a HUGE undisclosed bonus after their first fight. I know this because I know two of Chael’s friends. Dana will take care of him one way or another, ppv buys or another phat undisclosed bonus.
Anyone know what the reported salaries or ppv deals going on with the Sonnen/Jones fight this weekend? I am curious as to how they are going to handle this one with both coming off of the reality show, Jones’ new Nike deal, etc. I sincerely hope that Sonnen does get a ppv cut as he has done a great job promoting it, all Jones has had to do is respond and answer any questions. I hope Sonnen can pull it off.