Thank you for watching, and a BIG THANK YOU to everyone commenting on the subject. Fighter pay isn't a straightforward issue, and I'm glad many of you recognize that this documentary was made to be unbiased. I do highlight a positive side of Dana White at the end-love him or hate him, he built the sport we love so much, so credit to him! The next video will be about Robert Whittaker. Stay tuned!
They leave the UFC with nothing. Bad injuries. CTE , no money. No pension, No insurance just Dana Whites foot out they door . thanks for the billions snuka
Dana white and the owners STOLE it all. Dana got 500 million in the bank. Ortiz, Chuck, BI Penn, Counture have 500 bucks on the bank. Most of the new fighters same chet
I worked at a Walmart with a UFC fighter named Joseph Sandoval in 2012 and at the time he was top 7 in the bantamweight division. Still working at a Walmart. It showed me they really make no money at all.
At the very least they should allow them to have their own sponsors again. If they’re truly independent contractors then their sponsors shouldn’t matter to you they are their own brand at that point.
Its not even a look thing anymore. They could have criteria and other ways for making it more appealing. But how much money does Endeaver lose in assets annually for no longer offering big name companies big advertisements exclusive that doesn't often have a competitor on the same card.
They can have their own sponsors. The only stipulation is The walk to the cage, inside the cage, and the walk from the cage. SO they have all of fight week to do press displaying their sponsor. They can also do TV ads year around. Watching this video shows the UFC is taking care of the fighters way better than any other promotion including 80% of boxers.. So y'all idiots get off the band wagon and look at the facts.
UFC is the worst. The only smart guy was Fedor rustled Dana's panties by not signing 🤣 Also Ngannou was very smart too, got what he was worth by leaving
Fedor may not have made a mistake with Dana but he made worse mistakes. He pissed of Kadyrov and his daughter got beaten up by a Chechen goons. I don’t think anyone in this business leaves unscathed.
I tend to think about this sometimes when I am watching the Ultimate Fighter. You hear these moving stories about how they need this for their family or whatever but it's a horrible way to take care of your family.
No the money isn’t worth it in the ufc when Mighty Mouse got traded to one championship he made 10x more money in 3 fights than he made in all his ufc fights combined
@@jdbankshotNo way. Dude, you must have bumped your head. Coors Light is as cold and as smooth as the Rockies❤🏔🗻. The can marker turns blue when it's cold 🥶 💙. You're wrong, dude. Coors Light tastes better than Miller Lite and Bud Light all day.
The best thing Francis Ngannou has ever done were his boxing fights with Fury and Joshua. It made him about 30 million dollar. In the UFC it would take him as champion about 30 fights to make that money.
@@jamesstalin5871 The UFC was offering him like 8-9 million so no after 2-3 fights with PPV he easily would've cleared the same amount without completely destroying his legacy in the process with those boxing fights
The two events happened in Saudi Arabia, where the government spends a lot to attract big fights, often losing money to pay the fighters extra. They can do this because of oil wealth. It's ironic that Francis is all about treating fighters with respect while gladly taking money from a country criticized for its poor human rights record and its treatment of women, who face many restrictions.
Wow ,! You actually showed both sides. In my opinion, the only thing I don't like is how much they pay fighters for their first fights. If they give new fighters 20k and 20k. There are no more fighter pay problems. Because in my opinion, fighters, during their first fights, are in most need for money, because that extra 5k or 8k means a better fight camp or a dietitian. There's a problem with journalists who claim to be unbiased, notoriously, Ariel helwani. That guy always use fighters to shit on the UFC and especially Dana white.
That is such a great point, yes I agree the new fighters should get more since a camp can cost a lot of money. And yeah mma journalism needs improvement. The thing is, they know all of this stuff and even more but their job isn't always about the truth its about selling stories, some sad stuff really.
Yes, he shits on Dana and the ufc more than others but honestly there is truth in what he says. I agree journalism should be unbiased but fighters in the ufc should get more not only the stars should be payed accordingly.
@@unknowntrapper2330It's not about ticket sales, though. Peak Pitbull and Holly don't draw as much as peak Aldo and Tony Ferguson, yet the pay difference was still worse for Aldo and Tony, even someone as with insane longevity such as Dominic Cruz is still making less than 200k per fight
It is about sales. Even Dana said it with Nate "hes not a needle mover." After he fought connor, he said,"He's a needle mover now." Nates pay went up after that. Dj didnt atract the fans (the majority, which matters more) so he got paid less. Is it a coincidencethat Ronda got paid more thanany other woman and most other fighters? No. Same wirh connor, even cowboy thanked him for fighting because his paycheck was much larger. Ifc is a business and the fighters shouldnt get paid more if theyre not bringing in more money. Is ufc fair? I believe theyre not being that fair, but thats their business and if they domt like it, they can go to the other promotions @thememeconnoisseur4088
I am 61 years old are used to watch all the sports but now the only sport watches UFC it really really really pisses me off that these people are sacrificing and risking their life for pennies in reality
Hey, I’M 61 years old and only watch MMA. But I’m not sure I still think the fighters are underpaid. To be honest, I’m not 100% sure I really understand what the takeaway was from this video. Seemed to me that they were saying the UFC pays pretty well. Anyway, I just love the game. If I had to do it all over again, I’m pretty sure I would give MMA a try. But, alas, that ship has sailed... ...had a grease fire, an outbreak, and a mutiny, THEN hit the iceberg and sank.
I’m 37 and I really don’t give a sh!t, they couldn’t care less about me and what I make or if I risk my life in a dangerous job so why would I care or any fan for than matter?
@@duckmercy11 12555 in America per person. Next highest is Switzerland at 5 k a head. And it keeps getting lower. Why’s our healthcare 4 times more expensive than the rest of the world?
@@duckmercy11 Annually. And Countries like Germany, France, Sweden. In other words wealthy countries. The price is less and in many cases the care and wait times are better. Idk I hear most Americans complain about getting taxed for it. But everyone I have met that is from one of those countries thinks its worth it and they're glad they don't have to stress out about paying for a medical procedure.
@@tmzz3609he said absolutely nothing too do with him besides rip, and you then toss his addiction and struggle into it? Wow , dirtbag comment of the month, maybe even the year so far 🤦♂️🤦♂️
As a contractor myself, the main and nearly only problem i see with ufc pay is that they are not paid a cent for their exclusivity, I subcontract for one person , if a better offer come in i can leave and take that work and if someone wanted to lock me into a exclusive contract I'd want to be compensated with either lump sum,extra % per job or a wage like payment. I feel if the fighters come together to fix this one thing, it solves almost all problems with fighter pay
Unfortunately it’s not a comparable situation, cause UFC has all the leverage, they don’t need to pay extra to someone for their “exclusivity” You as a contractor, there are a ton of potential employers for you. As a fighter, there is only really one employer, at least only one that most fighters want to work for. And that’s UFC In the MMA industry, $9 out of every $10 earned is earned by the UFC. They have a huge monopoly on the industry, and the UFC brand is by far the best brand So, the fighters want to be employed by UFC. So UFC doesn’t really have to “sweeten the deal” so to speak. This is the core problem of the whole industry. UFC can get away with low payouts cause there is no competition to force change, fighters really have no where else to go that offers what the UFC offers in terms of opportunity / becoming a star
The other problem is fighters will never come together like how you're saying because they're all inherently willing to step over each other to get the bag, people forget because Usman VS Masvidal still happened when it was supposed to, but that was originally Usman VS Burns because the UFC didn't wanna pay Masvidal what he was asking and Burns was willing to be a scab and take a fraction for a title fight, if Burns didn't get COVID the week of Masvidal wouldn't have gotten paid what he did or have fought Usman on fight island, it's a pefect example of the crabs in a bucket mentality all fighters share, if one gets too far ahead the others will drag them back down while trying to claw their own way to financial stability
All athletes have to realize that there are inherent risks in their sports, race car driving, fighting, football. So they can’t go back and blame anyone else for that, but I always believed the UFC fighters are getting screwed big time on pay. Especially when the UFC took all their sponsorship deals, that was a dirty ass move. And Dana is a greedy scumbag, he said boxers are overpaid? They wouldn’t put on the promotions if people weren’t making money. The UFC will only pay the fighters the bare minimum that they have to to keep them, and since the other organizations are so small, right now the UFC is the most lucrative fighting organization for the promoters by a long shot. And the performance institute is free for fighters, that is great, but don’t act like you are so benevolent Dana, when you know damn well it is a tax right off, come on!
Glad you brought up P.I. Institute. Sure it's free. But that means fighter's have to move and live there. That in itself cost money and where they getting money to pay rent. Vegas ain't cheap!
i was expecting to just watch 2 minutes of this documentary. I ended up watching the WHOLE thing!! Mad love and huge respect to the dudes who put this together. Great doc!!
@@HaruthelastThat can't be right. If you are strong enough to fight there are many trades you could be doing. If you are really ambitious you can learn a trade and then start your own business. I know some very successful people who have done just that.
@@dangrimes5078im doing that as we speak, and trying to fight💪🏼 ill be damned if im gonna fight in my 40s cuz i dont have any other skills to pay the bills
You can tell that made it real and she didn’t want to say his name. Talk about last resort. And still, he hasn’t revived any major psychological help(at least publicly). I can’t imagine it all of a sudden just got better. Just better at hiding it.
@@pittsburghbob69I seen him on Rampages pod recently and he still seemed a bit out there..even for Tony.. I really hope the best for him. It really wasn't that long ago he was on a 12 fight win streak..and (mostly) loved by the fans. I remember hearing that phone call before and I agree with your take..she didn't want to do that..must be awful.
The idea of a promotion investing to build the name and brand of a fighter they don’t have over a longer period of time to see a return on is fairly silly, hence why all the major promotions operate that way. Even in boxing that idea of full freedom doesn’t really exist.
Nope. JJ is unhappily tied up too. gps had to fight his contract out. Only Conor, Ronda, and gimmick acts like Brock and that other wrestler get good contracts.
The entitlement is a new generation thing... not everyone is marketable... it's also the fight game... gotta fight to be the best.. don't sign the CONTRACT then
@@patrickp8315 Difference being the nature of a team game vs that of 1v1 combat. In a team game, you can play a role, not be a star, and still make a healthy living being someone who props up the star. In 1v1 combat sports, if you're a fighter, there's no bench. There's no propping up another guy. You're the guy.
Dana tries to subtract from boxing to add to the UFC never mind the fact there are two completely different sports and you can enjoy both. I don’t enjoy MMA but you could enjoy both.
With the release of all the documents around the antitrust lawsuit it feels like this video is now outdated because we have clear facts that show how underpaid they are. And how greedy and controlling the UFC is.
Fighter pay and Dana White's politics are two of the biggest reasons I haven't followed MMA much over the last 10 years, despite being a huge fan before that.
@joedimaggio1259 Ari Emmanuel, the Board of Directors, the financial duty owed by operating in the best financial interest of the shareholders considering the UFC is part of a publicly traded company and so on. So I know people love spinning that yarn that none of the UFC fighters get paid anything and that it’s all flowing over to Dana as the nefarious thief taking the pot because it sure is a much cooler story than the boring realities that have been stated endlessly by essentially everybody ever involved with the UFC that push against the narrative in so many ways about fighter pay and the boring basic fundamentals of operating a business that actually has an obligation of operating in a fashion that has a chance of reaching a profit and providing a return to shareholders. For one people often make their argument simply looking at the reported payouts from athletic commission disclosures despite it being long established that fighters almost always earn more than the disclosures indicate since the disclosures disclosure have never reflected any of the bonus pay fighters earned which is often well above their show/win money would get disclosed. Or court document showing exact amounts higher name fighters earned prior to the endeavor sale that was disclosed as $500K but was actually $5-6M. Or even Dana being such a greedy bastard that prior to the sale that stopped it paid a fighter like Liddell $400K a year to hold a BS job to try to help him remain retired to protect his health. But everybody loves to argue by using the minority of top paid boxers who earn absurd guarantees for PPV cards that end up losing huge sums of money to the point that the long standing providers of boxing for decades have exited the sport entirely and almost all major name fighters almost only box in Saudi who will subsidize the immense losses and use that as the standard of the fairness of what UFC fighters earn. The boring reality is only the slim majority of boxers earn the extreme paydays people point to, those events almost always lose huge money, the average fighter in the UFC makes more than the average pro boxer, and surprisingly when you need to profit from your events you can’t guarantee somebody $30M and then sell less than 100K in buys like Ngannou and Fury did and remain in business without somebody subsidizing your endless losses.
What Dana White does with the money he earns is irelevant.. 3 men took the UFC basically from hell and turned it into a Sport and and something thats so far ahead of the fucking game it would take something pretty amazing to even compare.. Its not even an apples and oranges game. 2% of UFC revenue for fighter pay is still more money as a whole than these wonton promotions talkin shit about they pay 50%. ..... 50% of nothing will always be NOTHING!. Do they offer anything else? Ufc offers many diff professional services thru a free World Class Facilty. Those people whom provide those services and therapy dont come w/o a cost. As a business owner. I dont care if you think Dana Whites greedy a dickhead or how you feel. Noone can disrespect him for what its taken from him to put the UFC in a Premier World Class position.. As with anything in life, If you suck, your pay reflects it. If you make a Company revenue you will reap the rewards thru negotiating the right contracts, financially, if you invest and not run thru money living outside of your means" youll be sucessful. This shits all ABC type stuff. The UFC imo falls between Sports/Entertainment category. If you attract the publics eyes,Your loyal to the business,.You build relations, Youll be on top of the heap. Is Mcgregor one of my favs? naw. Has he done alot for mma hell ya and i respect that in him. Has he invested,made wise decisions with his revenue. Of course. Will he ever hurt financially . I dont forsee it. My point is in my rambling is. Not everyone in the fight game wil be sucessful rich and famous. You must plow a path to sucess. I mean literally fuckin plow a path. And Dana White gives back to his fighters and the community in ways others apparently dont pay attention or see simply because its Danas business whether he chooses to discuss it or not. Just remember its a fighters goal to grasp all he can. Its the UFC as a business whos there to do exactly the same. Its not a share your wealth world in business.Dana has numbers ran constantly and i dont believe he will ever risk the UFC as being less than World Class over a few bucks pay or pay lesa than any other promotion pays. The percentage talk is horse shit. 50% sounds great but only is 50% is above the 5% UFC offered. And its not close.. just throwing numbers out there above so no drama . People almost gets locked into positions they really dont want to be in, stop think , weigh out options prior to making yourself miserable or homeless. America offers alternatives, choices, options. Move on if its not cutting it for you personally.
Dana you need to pay these guys more. You're worth $500M. How can you sleep at night? New young fighters can't afford to fight. Give them a chance. Be fair.
Dana isn't the CEO, it's Ari Emmanuel. Its a publicly traded company where an investment group Silver lake management owns 30 percent of the shares. Please educate yourself, it's sad UFC fighters are so financially clueless they think Dana White pays them out of his own pocket
Jeff Bezos is worth 197 billion, yet his delivery employees start out making 15 hours, and they have a better chance of dying on the job. It is a world problem, not a fight world problem only.
This as very well done but its sad that thousands will still take this journey where most fail and end up with physical and mental issues with no other real world applicable skills.
This is true unless you're a mcgregor with an entire country paying for your PPVs you're broke because of all the things you need to pay for and time you need to allot to compete. This is why I was stopped by my mother to pursue boxing when she was still alive. I won 10 fights. I only got 1500 philippine pesos and I needed 1500 more to pay more my monthly gym membership also I had to get checked because I had signs of punch drunk. I lost more money because a lot of things go to nutrition, gym fees, cornermen and management. You do it because you love it. Now I'm trying to get back because competing is very thrilling it's like you're a god in there.
Don’t forget, McGregor really made his most money in a non-UFC boxing match with Mayweather. I think the rumor was that a purse of more than $100 million was paid each fighter. I do t know the economics, I think Dana White allowed McGregor to fight Mayweather, and then promoted the fight and took a cut for himself and or the UFC. It was a pretty amazing financial outcome.
0:05 also that quote is misleading, what they may or may not specify is that the fighter roster is up 1200% from 2005. So yes they pay more on a whole than they used to, but they’re paying it to more people who have to then pay taxes, then for coaching and fight camps.
A very VERY well made video in my opinion. This showed in detail both sides of the fence with just facts instead of opinions and without any biased bs like there usually always is and i thought that was fantastic i really enjoyed this video and I'd love to see more videos of this calibre its important that fact based stuff like this is shown so people can make their own minds up about stuff thats real instead of having to take someone else's opinions on board like how the media usually portrays the stories they're doing and then probably change their minds on it all next week. This is how it should be shown to us....facts....actual factual facts. Shouldn't be too much to ask for imo.
Well said, mate. This is sadly all too rare. No ready-made opinions, no spin, no left or right wing agendas. As Det. Joe Friday used to say, “Just the facts.” Documentaries should ALL be like this. Well done!
Long ago I friend of mine use to fight for the ufc. He left after they tried to get him to sign a paper stating that the ufc was not a monopoly. Today we can clearly see that it is. Low pay and no gain. Dana going around bragging about how he gets banned from casinos because he won a million 🙄 but then lost 3, million he actually believed their hype and they got him lol~ fighting for free is not what any sport athlete plays for. Nick Diaz & Nate Diaz had a big name but both fighters combined never made more than mcgregor why is that fair? Let’s be honest today we easily see how ufc fighters have gotten ripped off ( Reebok curtain deal) to further steal money from fighters. Enough said.
Thats why ONE Championship I'm Asia is important. And they coming for the UFC and they make more money than the UFC because Asia is by far the biggest market.
Shoot look the PGA Tour. If you don't make the weekend cut you don't get paid anything at all. Imagine going to work and not getting paid anything. That's why I'm for LIV Golf Tour the more great paying options the better for the athletes.
That would be so stupid if they did that UFC could cut all the small irrelevant fighters who dared to try to ruin their ppv and where do they go than no where cause they don't have big enough names and all the big fighters would get fined from the UFC for not applying to the ppv that they signed on there own contract and fans wouldn't side with them a small amount will but not the majority remember when Jon Jones refused to fight at ppv and they were forced to cancel it the UFC fans piled on him angrily I like your morals but not the idea a more better solution is fighters to get big in the UFC and when that are huge then threaten to leave so the UFC can offer more expensive payment it what Francis f,ed up on he should taken the Jones fight and than if he won be the biggest and most wanted free agent.
They are the highest paid fighters in the world, which is nuts. A tiered salaried position would be awesome. Healthcare, 50k, 75k, 100k, on up dependent on time in and victories. A union is needed. Strikeforce paid my buddy $150 in gas, a hotel room, and $100 casino voucher one time. Cody Mckenzie is a good example, came down from Alaska off fishing boats to fight short notice. He made more fishing 😂
The UFC needs to get rid of that reebok contract and let these fighters get their own sponsors. Some fighters lost 6 figures when the UFC signed that contract.
I used to head to mma junkie and read results of shows and it always blew me away how low the pay was especially for the undercard fighters. Now this is in the mid 2000s just before and just after TUF. Once that hit the sport blew up as we all know. Even a couple of years after the first TUF it blew me away that guys would get $1000 to $3000 for an undercard bout. No way that would even cover a proper fight prep. Hell it probably wouldn't cover your food and supplement alone. The sport was huge even when it was growing. We all saw the clothing lines, fighters were getting sponsorship deals with supplement companies, etc, but it was just pathetic how much a lot of those fighters were paid.
...not to defend Dana per se, but it’s not like Dana is the one choosing what to pay people. He’s the frontman, the face, he deals with the fighters, the media, oversees things as a whole But the UFC is a multi-Billion dollar company. They have a whole team of people that assess their assets and expenditures, determine the optimal strategies for maximum profits, weigh risk vs reward, etc, etc.
Very interesting video. I think the reebook/venom deal is the bigges problem. NBA and soccer player havetheir shoe deals, amd it is a lot of money. Fighters involve in a platform like the ufc could be making huge money for sponsors. Maybe UFC could get a cut like 10-20%. I still think the UFC fighters are underpaid.
"This is why they call it a business...... and some it is none of yours." - CS best line ever. Also, that Venum deal is shit. Of course its only good for the brand no one ever heard of.
The difference between boxing and the UFC is the promoter works for the fighter in boxing. And in the UFC that role is reversed. So inboxing the promoter is trying to get as much money as he can for his promotion as well as the fighter. It's the opposite in the UFC. The UFC promotion is trying to get as much as it can for the promotion and then it will give to the fighter what it thinks the fighter deserves.
Dana White controls everything. He’s making millions per event. The fighters are just making thousands. Once you’re no good anymore, you’re discarded like a bottle cap. Dana White ain’t stupid.
Bottom line: Almost every middle class American tries to save/invest anywhere near 1 million to retire. Those making millions and still going broke are stupid to now manage their finances well. They get caught up in a lavish lifestyle of $$$, multiple exotic cars, gambling, and expensive women. Look at many of the athletes who go broke bc of their lavish lifestyle. Athletes should have a trusting and good financial advisor/agent to help them retire after their career.
These are professional athletes. They have to pay for a large amount of medical care (both while competing and when retired), they have to pay their training camp, they will not be able to work in this career more than a few years and once they are out they will likely not be able to work in any job at the same capacity they could before due to brain damage. This isn’t as cut and dried as a typical 9-5
@andreahighsides7756 Understandable, but the UFC has places in their facilities for their athletes when they are hurt. Just like a musician who makes millions on a 1 hit wonder, people will have to manage their finances. I was a former athlete as well in college, but I knew that many athletes need a supplemental income years after they retire when they are pro. I have two friends who played in the NFL who had good agents help them supplement their income- one owns a few car washes in the Dallas area. Another owns a few kiosks in the airport. They both made the league minimum and remain not working after their 10 year careers
@@andreahighsides7756 If Connor McGregor files for bankruptcy like many millionaire athletes/musicians, he did not need to have a Lamboeghini yacht, dock it at Monaco for over a million dollars a day, and have a fleet of sportscars each worth more than my house. He could easily put aside 1 million of that money and live a modest lifestyle. Afterall, many of us are trying to make near a million to retire.
There is literally thousands of boxers that are unheard of to the mainstream public even some armchair fans that are making more than most of the top 15 in every weight division of the UFC If Dana white doesn’t change the way things are structured very soon he will loose control of the MMA world
Fighter pay isnt the issue. Its costs of fighting. UFC should pay for the medical tests, food, coaches, travel. All of it went into the fight so why should fighters have to pay to fight. UFC should have some sort of per diem for each fight.
There is a problem with your math. You're getting $160,000 from taking average PPV earning per fighter and just taking 20% of that. It doesn’t work that way. Most fighters never get more than 10 fights. Fighters with less than 10 fights aren't even making $50k a year unless they consistently get Perf. Of the night or Fight of the Night. Almost no one is doing that. Most of the fighters are making very average salaries, or below average salaries to get the shit beat out of them. It's a rough rough life for not a lot of money. This is all without getting into paying managers, trainers, rent, taxes, and healthcare. If you think healthcare premiums are bad, see what it looks like when you get beat up for a living.
I love your point, the truth is it's that it's not so obvious to fix fighter pay. Im not sure myself whats the solution, I would love for them to make more but once they earn more they fight less, look at Khamzat he fights once a year only, he could be making more but he won't just fight anybody since he takes in factor the championship title....which will earn him more money. And thats the average they make when you combine all the fighters together, its not a specific way to explain how much a fighter makes because it depends per individual but its still a metric that can be use to explain the general concept
@bloodsportfilms Khamzat doesn't fight because he's wanted for questioning in connection with war crimes. He can't fight in any country that will extradite him.
BloodyElbow has done a detailed breakdown of UFC fighter pay based on the civil action lawsuit against Zuffa. Basically, the profit split for the fighters is around 17-18%, where as in most other sports it is closer to 50%. Look at tennis, the ATP tour recently announced a new profit sharing split where fighters who are not in the top 100 are going to be supported more because it is very difficult to cover the costs of travel and training. The UFC has grown so much because they keep a lions share for themselves (the owners). Even the top earners in the UFC like Conor, Jon Jones, Ronda, GSP, Anderson were all underpaid when you consider how many PPVs they helped sell.
People like to compare boxing revenue. But even in boxing only the main event gets the majority of the revenue. Undercard is severely underpaid.The UFC is an actual company with employees. They have bottom lines. Boxing is standalone per whatever the main event is.
It's really easy to spend a fucton of money in the US. Just before the crash of 08, I'd kept track of my spending and realized I was spending $900 a month on food. This was because I was eating out every meal at "reasonable" places. I started cooking at home and got it down to $250-$300 a month. The trouble is, you start making OK money and a $20 or $30 dinner doesn't seem excessive.
Let's be honest, Dana white has a heart. Buisness is buisness but, when u hear Dana get emotional, when u hear of what he donates, hear his voice tone, guys a realist and tbh, I love listening to press conference after ufc and what he has to say. He's direct, and sure will be a hero to more, than an enemy, easy. Look at what the guy has directed, put some respect on his name.
He's practically a billionaire, God bless his gigantic heart for donating peanuts.. like what the fuck are you going to offer with healthcare for these guys? Just paying them a fair salary avoids a bunch of bullshit.. Yeah he's got a heart, yeah, healthcare helps, but if they're getting scammed, which we don't know, then they are..
@@MF-kr4hfno one is forcing these guys to sign contracts with UFC. They can go try boxing like Ngannou did, PFL, Bellator. Dana is giving the fans what they want because they keep tuning in by the millions. Lastly, funny how you sh*t on a guy for donating money he doesn’t have to because you don’t think it’s enough. My guess is you hate Dana because he is rich so no matter what he donates you will still b*tch. This coming from a guy who probably drops a $5 bill once a year at Christmas in the Salvation Army bucket.
I like this video but question: Where do you factor in the # of fighters? 18% to 578 fighters compared to 50% to 70 fighters is significantly different. That’s often a talking point that is missed. Yes UFC could pay out more to fighters but they also have a significantly larger roster meaning less per fighter regardless. Especially those 1 and done fighters that lose a fight and are tossed aside.
The UFC back in 2021 had about the same amount of fighters than Bellator. Close to 500 fighters for each company. This research was made by a reporter where these numbers were taken from legal documents due to their lawsuit. But for those 1 and done fighters thats tough to find out since it can happen in every company. By now the UFC has more fighters tho, Dana mentioned at least 600 a few weeks ago.
Example 1: Everyone makes a base salary of 72,000 a year. Everyone fights 3 times a year and you get your paycheck for a 4 month period on fight night Or the day after. (every fight you miss you forfeit 4 months equivalent in pay except for cases of injury as determined by the sanctioning body)the number 15 guy makes an extra 50k a year on up to the number 1 contender who makes an extra 500k a year and the division Champion makes 1,000,000 (or more) a year plus PPV points. Locker room bonuses, POTN, FOTN bonuses are still paid out to incentivize skill. The numbers can be tweaked obviously but by golly I think I solved it!
I love the sport, but I find it increasingly difficult to support the business. I can’t in good conscience support a business that trade’s profits for a persons well being.
When UFC video game first came out, some fighters were forced to sell their likeness in perpetuity For $1500 or risk, having their contract. Terminated.
Great Doc!!! Love that you showed both sides. The main point for me was how Dana takes care of his fighters, let pettis use the PI after he left for his mental health, told Nate whatever you need this is your house, tons of donations to struggling fighters going through issues, the 1-million-dollar surprise checks to fighters even after they lose! Dana is a Legend, and the UFC is beyond a great company.
Us fans, we are so used to seeing the big stars earn millions so we dont ever think about those $50K fight of the night or KO of the night bonuses are literally life-changing money for the fighters lower on the card
When Dana pulled the ability for the fighters to have their own sponsors is when I lost interest in the UFC. Their sponsorships allowed them to supplement what little income the UFC gave them for risking their lives each time they walked into that cage. Dana, Frank, and Lorenzo made a fortune off these guys and threw them scraps.
I remember when Jared Cannonier was interviewed after a fight and said that he was broke and needed more money. He has something like 5 kids, but he is from Dallas, TX where (at the time) the cost of living was lower than many other cities and according to a web search his net worth is estimated at about $1 million. That puts him in the upper class. All the fans who think UFC fighters aren't paid enough need to look at their own paychecks first.
@@paulsmith5611 You can’t compare headliners on PPV to the average American. Even then, top 5 guys in the division are paid a Walmart manager salary. These are the top athlete’s in the world. It’s like you get mad at people in the NFL getting more than you so you group fighters in with them… The average salary of an AHL hockey player is higher than the average UFC fighter. These fighters weren’t paid all the years it took training, and won’t be paid after their careers, with a guarantee of brain damage
With these lousy contracts (pay) in UFC, they should at least have some sort of health insurance and professional support when it comes to mental health, and equal to ALL fighters under their contract! - Especially at the end, or after their career.
Protest and unionize!?!? The highest paid fighters would never! Because that means they’d get paid less and feel like they’ve worked harder than the next guy who’s struggling to make ends meet! A fighters union won’t happen.
Fighters aren’t underpaid. Jalin Turner just made around $200,000 in a few minutes because he was willing to take a fight short notice and has the style & skill to earn a Performance of the Night bonus. Guys want to fight 1-2 times a year, be boring, get too out of shape outside of a camp, don’t want to start a gym, remain one-dimensional strikers so now they’re scared to take a short notice fight with a grappler, and still want to live super comfortably. So many ways to make money just with “UFC Fighter” attached to your name. Sell courses. Do seminars and camps like jiu jitsu guys and wrestlers do. Say funny things during press conferences like Andre Fili just did. So many options
financial knowledge is important but the expenses in pro fighting way way more than you realise..... one bad injury and it can run your dry in one go if yo knoe how much hospital bills are specially in the cases like surgery then recovery then rehabilitation and then try to get back o track...
That is what confuses me. How does Dana White get away with calling them? Independent contractors they sign exclusive contracts with the UFC everything what’s independent?
Thank you for watching, and a BIG THANK YOU to everyone commenting on the subject. Fighter pay isn't a straightforward issue, and I'm glad many of you recognize that this documentary was made to be unbiased. I do highlight a positive side of Dana White at the end-love him or hate him, he built the sport we love so much, so credit to him! The next video will be about Robert Whittaker. Stay tuned!
They leave the UFC with nothing. Bad injuries. CTE , no money. No pension, No insurance just Dana Whites foot out they door . thanks for the billions snuka
Dana white and the owners STOLE it all. Dana got 500 million in the bank. Ortiz, Chuck, BI Penn, Counture have 500 bucks on the bank. Most of the new fighters same chet
The occult establishment built and owns the ufc. That is why it is no1. White is a hoto frontman.
The most inaccurate and misleading documentary 🥱
@@publicenemy1238 cry 🤣🤣
I worked at a Walmart with a UFC fighter named Joseph Sandoval in 2012 and at the time he was top 7 in the bantamweight division. Still working at a Walmart. It showed me they really make no money at all.
Patrick cote was still in the canadian army when he faced aderson silva on a saturday and he showed up on monday.
Joseph Sandoval never won a fight in the ufc. Made 2 appearances. Both first round KO/TKO losses
@@yuneedtoeat5600 never said there were 30 guys in the bantamweight at that time. I think 7 was it and buddy made the appearances.
Kudos to him for even making it that far. Just not a great example for fighter pay especially with your wording
@@yuneedtoeat5600 you’d think it’d still be enough to not have to come back to Walmart for $12/hr
At the very least they should allow them to have their own sponsors again. If they’re truly independent contractors then their sponsors shouldn’t matter to you they are their own brand at that point.
Agreed
I agree. But it does look better with no sponsors
Its not even a look thing anymore. They could have criteria and other ways for making it more appealing. But how much money does Endeaver lose in assets annually for no longer offering big name companies big advertisements exclusive that doesn't often have a competitor on the same card.
They can have their own sponsors. The only stipulation is The walk to the cage, inside the cage, and the walk from the cage. SO they have all of fight week to do press displaying their sponsor. They can also do TV ads year around.
Watching this video shows the UFC is taking care of the fighters way better than any other promotion including 80% of boxers..
So y'all idiots get off the band wagon and look at the facts.
@Trucker231610 yes but a sponser pays 10x the amount to wear it while fighting compared to pre fight/post fight
UFC is the worst. The only smart guy was Fedor rustled Dana's panties by not signing 🤣 Also Ngannou was very smart too, got what he was worth by leaving
Fedor may not have made a mistake with Dana but he made worse mistakes. He pissed of Kadyrov and his daughter got beaten up by a Chechen goons. I don’t think anyone in this business leaves unscathed.
Tito got his ass too.
Meanwhile in some porn sites, you can make a video of you sniffing panties, make it a premium video and make money from it
Exactly, nobody is forcing anyone to fight for the ufc.
True word, brother
I would never recommend a kid to aspire to be a professional fighter. The money is absolutely not worth the risk. Use the same efforts somewhere else.
I tend to think about this sometimes when I am watching the Ultimate Fighter. You hear these moving stories about how they need this for their family or whatever but it's a horrible way to take care of your family.
@@V-RADIO you can work a fraction as hard as these kids do and support a family.
Lies again? Fight Pass USD SGD
exactly why the hw division is so fucking ass. no human with elit genes is gonna waste themselves getting punched in the head for no money
No the money isn’t worth it in the ufc when Mighty Mouse got traded to one championship he made 10x more money in 3 fights than he made in all his ufc fights combined
“I’m gonna drink a Coors Light….thats a Coors Light because Bud Light won’t pay me nothing!”
Brock Lesnar saying the quiet part out loud 15 years ago
Best line ever! I remember Brock saying that at I believe UFC 200 - the only UFC I ever paid to watch.
he should've said miller lite, coors light is probably the worst beer on earth.
@@jdbankshotNo way. Dude, you must have bumped your head. Coors Light is as cold and as smooth as the Rockies❤🏔🗻. The can marker turns blue when it's cold 🥶 💙. You're wrong, dude. Coors Light tastes better than Miller Lite and Bud Light all day.
@@YouPulledOnIt all 3 of those are terrible beers. an insult to real beer drinkers.
@@jdbankshot figures you drink tranny juice
The best thing Francis Ngannou has ever done were his boxing fights with Fury and Joshua. It made him about 30 million dollar. In the UFC it would take him as champion about 30 fights to make that money.
I agree with your point but he'd have 30 million way before he'd done 30 title defences. More like 10 - 12
He is an amazing person and I'm really happy he got paid. F the UFC
@@jamesstalin5871 The UFC was offering him like 8-9 million so no after 2-3 fights with PPV he easily would've cleared the same amount without completely destroying his legacy in the process with those boxing fights
@@TheDXJC56 How did he destroy his legacy lmfao. He went into boxing for money everyone knows that. What he did in MMA is completely separate.
The two events happened in Saudi Arabia, where the government spends a lot to attract big fights, often losing money to pay the fighters extra. They can do this because of oil wealth. It's ironic that Francis is all about treating fighters with respect while gladly taking money from a country criticized for its poor human rights record and its treatment of women, who face many restrictions.
Basically, UFC pay top 1% and the rest of the 99% are screwed
But thats also life no?
just like casino does
Just like boxing
Just like life... so what
😢 feel so bad!
Wow ,! You actually showed both sides.
In my opinion, the only thing I don't like is how much they pay fighters for their first fights. If they give new fighters 20k and 20k. There are no more fighter pay problems.
Because in my opinion, fighters, during their first fights, are in most need for money, because that extra 5k or 8k means a better fight camp or a dietitian.
There's a problem with journalists who claim to be unbiased, notoriously, Ariel helwani. That guy always use fighters to shit on the UFC and especially Dana white.
That is such a great point, yes I agree the new fighters should get more since a camp can cost a lot of money.
And yeah mma journalism needs improvement. The thing is, they know all of this stuff and even more but their job isn't always about the truth its about selling stories, some sad stuff really.
Yes, he shits on Dana and the ufc more than others but honestly there is truth in what he says. I agree journalism should be unbiased but fighters in the ufc should get more not only the stars should be payed accordingly.
cos dana is evil.
Mighty mouse earning 200000 at the most is RIDICOULESS! Derrick lewis makes 400000 everytime he goes in the octagon.
Wasn’t selling tickets he was boring
People would rather see the big boys duke it out than a guy who is 5'3".
Bantamweights dont pack the seats. Heavyweights do.
And Mighty Mouse's personality appeals to a minority of the fans.
@@unknowntrapper2330It's not about ticket sales, though. Peak Pitbull and Holly don't draw as much as peak Aldo and Tony Ferguson, yet the pay difference was still worse for Aldo and Tony, even someone as with insane longevity such as Dominic Cruz is still making less than 200k per fight
It is about sales. Even Dana said it with Nate "hes not a needle mover." After he fought connor, he said,"He's a needle mover now." Nates pay went up after that. Dj didnt atract the fans (the majority, which matters more) so he got paid less. Is it a coincidencethat Ronda got paid more thanany other woman and most other fighters? No. Same wirh connor, even cowboy thanked him for fighting because his paycheck was much larger. Ifc is a business and the fighters shouldnt get paid more if theyre not bringing in more money. Is ufc fair? I believe theyre not being that fair, but thats their business and if they domt like it, they can go to the other promotions @thememeconnoisseur4088
I am 61 years old are used to watch all the sports but now the only sport watches UFC it really really really pisses me off that these people are sacrificing and risking their life for pennies in reality
Hey, I’M 61 years old and only watch MMA. But I’m not sure I still think the fighters are underpaid. To be honest, I’m not 100% sure I really understand what the takeaway was from this video. Seemed to me that they were saying the UFC pays pretty well.
Anyway, I just love the game. If I had to do it all over again, I’m pretty sure I would give MMA a try.
But, alas, that ship has sailed...
...had a grease fire, an outbreak, and a mutiny, THEN hit the iceberg and sank.
I’m 72 and it pisses me off too
I’m 37 and I really don’t give a sh!t, they couldn’t care less about me and what I make or if I risk my life in a dangerous job so why would I care or any fan for than matter?
Yea but you still watch it
I couldn't care less
Great documentary that shows both sides.
This deserves SO many more views.
Thanks brother!
True, love that it showed both sides
So the moral of the story is health care is way too expensive
US government- We agree with that message.
How much does it cost?
@@duckmercy11 12555 in America per person. Next highest is Switzerland at 5 k a head. And it keeps getting lower. Why’s our healthcare 4 times more expensive than the rest of the world?
@@jscarpa2002 Is that annually or monthly?
@@duckmercy11 Annually. And Countries like Germany, France, Sweden. In other words wealthy countries. The price is less and in many cases the care and wait times are better. Idk I hear most Americans complain about getting taxed for it. But everyone I have met that is from one of those countries thinks its worth it and they're glad they don't have to stress out about paying for a medical procedure.
RIP Bonner, true warrior and pioneer
Bonnar.
He died of a fentanyl overdose not because the UFC didn't pay him enough
@@tmzz3609no one said anything about how he died. He was in one of the most impactful fights of all time. Use your brain
@@tmzz3609he said absolutely nothing too do with him besides rip, and you then toss his addiction and struggle into it? Wow , dirtbag comment of the month, maybe even the year so far 🤦♂️🤦♂️
@@tmzz3609 I think its a prescription pain ki11er. He was probably on oxy for years...
As a contractor myself, the main and nearly only problem i see with ufc pay is that they are not paid a cent for their exclusivity, I subcontract for one person , if a better offer come in i can leave and take that work and if someone wanted to lock me into a exclusive contract I'd want to be compensated with either lump sum,extra % per job or a wage like payment. I feel if the fighters come together to fix this one thing, it solves almost all problems with fighter pay
Yep you are right
Unfortunately it’s not a comparable situation, cause UFC has all the leverage, they don’t need to pay extra to someone for their “exclusivity”
You as a contractor, there are a ton of potential employers for you. As a fighter, there is only really one employer, at least only one that most fighters want to work for. And that’s UFC
In the MMA industry, $9 out of every $10 earned is earned by the UFC. They have a huge monopoly on the industry, and the UFC brand is by far the best brand
So, the fighters want to be employed by UFC. So UFC doesn’t really have to “sweeten the deal” so to speak.
This is the core problem of the whole industry. UFC can get away with low payouts cause there is no competition to force change, fighters really have no where else to go that offers what the UFC offers in terms of opportunity / becoming a star
A lot of places use "contractor" as a code word for "employee without benefits".
The other problem is fighters will never come together like how you're saying because they're all inherently willing to step over each other to get the bag, people forget because Usman VS Masvidal still happened when it was supposed to, but that was originally Usman VS Burns because the UFC didn't wanna pay Masvidal what he was asking and Burns was willing to be a scab and take a fraction for a title fight, if Burns didn't get COVID the week of Masvidal wouldn't have gotten paid what he did or have fought Usman on fight island, it's a pefect example of the crabs in a bucket mentality all fighters share, if one gets too far ahead the others will drag them back down while trying to claw their own way to financial stability
All athletes have to realize that there are inherent risks in their sports, race car driving, fighting, football. So they can’t go back and blame anyone else for that, but I always believed the UFC fighters are getting screwed big time on pay. Especially when the UFC took all their sponsorship deals, that was a dirty ass move. And Dana is a greedy scumbag, he said boxers are overpaid? They wouldn’t put on the promotions if people weren’t making money. The UFC will only pay the fighters the bare minimum that they have to to keep them, and since the other organizations are so small, right now the UFC is the most lucrative fighting organization for the promoters
by a long shot. And the performance institute is free for fighters, that is great, but don’t act like you are so benevolent Dana, when you know damn well it is a tax right off, come on!
Yeah Show Time made so much money huh😂😂 they don’t make enough revenue or sell enough ppvs; they weren’t profitable😂
Glad you brought up P.I. Institute. Sure it's free. But that means fighter's have to move and live there. That in itself cost money and where they getting money to pay rent. Vegas ain't cheap!
That’s a lame excuse and one that lacks any integrity
Soccer players end up great most of the time
i was expecting to just watch 2 minutes of this documentary. I ended up watching the WHOLE thing!! Mad love and huge respect to the dudes who put this together. Great doc!!
Im glad you liked it! The dudes is actually just one guy, me 😅 stick around, Max Holloway documentary coming out in the next few days
@@bloodsportfilms count me in my guy. I'll be there.
Wow!!! You committed 30 minutes of your busy life!! Amazing!
@@That90sShowsometimes the thumbnails and title is intriguing but then it’s a boring watch. So it checks out
"If you're in business with me, don't tell me no"
That sounds like a superiority, inferiority relationship if anything.
That quote was taken out of context. He was talking about being able to bring ideas to life.
How a pimp talks to his women 😂
Sounds like P. Diddy!
Moral of the story: don't fight for a living.
Sometimes it's the only way b, speaking for myself.
@@HaruthelastThat can't be right. If you are strong enough to fight there are many trades you could be doing. If you are really ambitious you can learn a trade and then start your own business. I know some very successful people who have done just that.
Absolutely true 👍
Or if u do, do boxing
@@dangrimes5078im doing that as we speak, and trying to fight💪🏼 ill be damned if im gonna fight in my 40s cuz i dont have any other skills to pay the bills
Chilling when she says “Tony Ferguson”
You can tell that made it real and she didn’t want to say his name.
Talk about last resort. And still, he hasn’t revived any major psychological help(at least publicly).
I can’t imagine it all of a sudden just got better. Just better at hiding it.
@@pittsburghbob69I seen him on Rampages pod recently and he still seemed a bit out there..even for Tony.. I really hope the best for him. It really wasn't that long ago he was on a 12 fight win streak..and (mostly) loved by the fans. I remember hearing that phone call before and I agree with your take..she didn't want to do that..must be awful.
El cucuy
I thought she would say ''Steven Seagal''
@@pittsburghbob69It can only get worse unfortunately.
People dont realize the severity of signing a contract. The promotion has you by the balls. Unless you're Conor, jones, gsp or jorge to name a few.
But if you don't like it, don't sign it. That's why it's called a negotiation
They also got grabbed by the b*lls.
Remember when Conor was frustated that the UFC didn't give him fights
The idea of a promotion investing to build the name and brand of a fighter they don’t have over a longer period of time to see a return on is fairly silly, hence why all the major promotions operate that way. Even in boxing that idea of full freedom doesn’t really exist.
@@brock8396 can not negotiate with a company that is a monopoly, unless there is a union
Nope. JJ is unhappily tied up too. gps had to fight his contract out. Only Conor, Ronda, and gimmick acts like Brock and that other wrestler get good contracts.
Great doc.. small bit of advise.. turn the background music down
Thank you!
I agree, it's not too loud, but 10% quieter would be better
@@harrytgough9101 stop the hate bro
Not hate it's called feedback@@treztrez8660
The UFC has 300 fighters. 5% are stars.
The entitlement is a new generation thing... not everyone is marketable... it's also the fight game... gotta fight to be the best.. don't sign the CONTRACT then
How many people play basketballs and how many became NBA stars? That's life. Not everyone can be a star.
@@FlipNasty1 It's not Fight and get paid it's sell tickets and get paid
Exactly no stars at all
@@patrickp8315 Difference being the nature of a team game vs that of 1v1 combat. In a team game, you can play a role, not be a star, and still make a healthy living being someone who props up the star. In 1v1 combat sports, if you're a fighter, there's no bench. There's no propping up another guy. You're the guy.
It's odd Dana smash boxing over Bowe throwing his belt in the trash when Conor essentially did the same thing with two belts.
Dana tries to subtract from boxing to add to the UFC never mind the fact there are two completely different sports and you can enjoy both. I don’t enjoy MMA but you could enjoy both.
There were a lot of good points made in this video/short doc that I've never heard nor thought about before. Great content. - new sub
Welcome aboard!
With the release of all the documents around the antitrust lawsuit it feels like this video is now outdated because we have clear facts that show how underpaid they are. And how greedy and controlling the UFC is.
Preach
Fighter pay and Dana White's politics are two of the biggest reasons I haven't followed MMA much over the last 10 years, despite being a huge fan before that.
Because Dana White wants to play $600,000 a hand at blackjack in vegas.....
You think he plays cards with his bosses money?
What a tool Dana is a scumbag
What boss
@joedimaggio1259 Ari Emmanuel, the Board of Directors, the financial duty owed by operating in the best financial interest of the shareholders considering the UFC is part of a publicly traded company and so on. So I know people love spinning that yarn that none of the UFC fighters get paid anything and that it’s all flowing over to Dana as the nefarious thief taking the pot because it sure is a much cooler story than the boring realities that have been stated endlessly by essentially everybody ever involved with the UFC that push against the narrative in so many ways about fighter pay and the boring basic fundamentals of operating a business that actually has an obligation of operating in a fashion that has a chance of reaching a profit and providing a return to shareholders. For one people often make their argument simply looking at the reported payouts from athletic commission disclosures despite it being long established that fighters almost always earn more than the disclosures indicate since the disclosures disclosure have never reflected any of the bonus pay fighters earned which is often well above their show/win money would get disclosed.
Or court document showing exact amounts higher name fighters earned prior to the endeavor sale that was disclosed as $500K but was actually $5-6M. Or even Dana being such a greedy bastard that prior to the sale that stopped it paid a fighter like Liddell $400K a year to hold a BS job to try to help him remain retired to protect his health. But everybody loves to argue by using the minority of top paid boxers who earn absurd guarantees for PPV cards that end up losing huge sums of money to the point that the long standing providers of boxing for decades have exited the sport entirely and almost all major name fighters almost only box in Saudi who will subsidize the immense losses and use that as the standard of the fairness of what UFC fighters earn. The boring reality is only the slim majority of boxers earn the extreme paydays people point to, those events almost always lose huge money, the average fighter in the UFC makes more than the average pro boxer, and surprisingly when you need to profit from your events you can’t guarantee somebody $30M and then sell less than 100K in buys like Ngannou and Fury did and remain in business without somebody subsidizing your endless losses.
What Dana White does with the money he earns is irelevant.. 3 men took the UFC basically from hell and turned it into a Sport and and something thats so far ahead of the fucking game it would take something pretty amazing to even compare.. Its not even an apples and oranges game. 2% of UFC revenue for fighter pay is still more money as a whole than these wonton promotions talkin shit about they pay 50%. ..... 50% of nothing will always be NOTHING!. Do they offer anything else? Ufc offers many diff professional services thru a free World Class Facilty. Those people whom provide those services and therapy dont come w/o a cost. As a business owner. I dont care if you think Dana Whites greedy a dickhead or how you feel. Noone can disrespect him for what its taken from him to put the UFC in a Premier World Class position.. As with anything in life, If you suck, your pay reflects it. If you make a Company revenue you will reap the rewards thru negotiating the right contracts, financially, if you invest and not run thru money living outside of your means" youll be sucessful. This shits all ABC type stuff. The UFC imo falls between Sports/Entertainment category. If you attract the publics eyes,Your loyal to the business,.You build relations, Youll be on top of the heap. Is Mcgregor one of my favs? naw. Has he done alot for mma hell ya and i respect that in him. Has he invested,made wise decisions with his revenue. Of course. Will he ever hurt financially . I dont forsee it. My point is in my rambling is. Not everyone in the fight game wil be sucessful rich and famous. You must plow a path to sucess. I mean literally fuckin plow a path. And Dana White gives back to his fighters and the community in ways others apparently dont pay attention or see simply because its Danas business whether he chooses to discuss it or not. Just remember its a fighters goal to grasp all he can. Its the UFC as a business whos there to do exactly the same. Its not a share your wealth world in business.Dana has numbers ran constantly and i dont believe he will ever risk the UFC as being less than World Class over a few bucks pay or pay lesa than any other promotion pays. The percentage talk is horse shit. 50% sounds great but only is 50% is above the 5% UFC offered. And its not close.. just throwing numbers out there above so no drama . People almost gets locked into positions they really dont want to be in, stop think , weigh out options prior to making yourself miserable or homeless. America offers alternatives, choices, options. Move on if its not cutting it for you personally.
Dana you need to pay these guys more. You're worth $500M. How can you sleep at night? New young fighters can't afford to fight. Give them a chance. Be fair.
Lmfaoooooooooooooooooo....
Oooooooooooooo... oooooo.
No. Lol
Dana isn't the CEO, it's Ari Emmanuel. Its a publicly traded company where an investment group Silver lake management owns 30 percent of the shares.
Please educate yourself, it's sad UFC fighters are so financially clueless they think Dana White pays them out of his own pocket
@DragonZombie2000 thank you lol 😆
Most of them are poor as chet after they leave, And have lots of injuries and the CTE getting WORSE. Dana White got over 500 million in the bank
Jeff Bezos is worth 197 billion, yet his delivery employees start out making 15 hours, and they have a better chance of dying on the job. It is a world problem, not a fight world problem only.
This as very well done but its sad that thousands will still take this journey where most fail and end up with physical and mental issues with no other real world applicable skills.
This is true unless you're a mcgregor with an entire country paying for your PPVs you're broke because of all the things you need to pay for and time you need to allot to compete. This is why I was stopped by my mother to pursue boxing when she was still alive. I won 10 fights. I only got 1500 philippine pesos and I needed 1500 more to pay more my monthly gym membership also I had to get checked because I had signs of punch drunk. I lost more money because a lot of things go to nutrition, gym fees, cornermen and management. You do it because you love it. Now I'm trying to get back because competing is very thrilling it's like you're a god in there.
man what a story, I wish you all the best my friend!
Don’t forget, McGregor really made his most money in a non-UFC boxing match with Mayweather. I think the rumor was that a purse of more than $100 million was paid each fighter.
I do t know the economics, I think Dana White allowed McGregor to fight Mayweather, and then promoted the fight and took a cut for himself and or the UFC.
It was a pretty amazing financial outcome.
@@HalFraseryes, Dana and UFC took a cut off Conor's Paycheck.
Francis on the other hand didn't have to give anything to Dana
0:05 also that quote is misleading, what they may or may not specify is that the fighter roster is up 1200% from 2005. So yes they pay more on a whole than they used to, but they’re paying it to more people who have to then pay taxes, then for coaching and fight camps.
Movie level production documentary. Great Job!
A very VERY well made video in my opinion. This showed in detail both sides of the fence with just facts instead of opinions and without any biased bs like there usually always is and i thought that was fantastic i really enjoyed this video and I'd love to see more videos of this calibre its important that fact based stuff like this is shown so people can make their own minds up about stuff thats real instead of having to take someone else's opinions on board like how the media usually portrays the stories they're doing and then probably change their minds on it all next week. This is how it should be shown to us....facts....actual factual facts. Shouldn't be too much to ask for imo.
Well said, mate. This is sadly all too rare. No ready-made opinions, no spin, no left or right wing agendas. As Det. Joe Friday used to say, “Just the facts.” Documentaries should ALL be like this. Well done!
Long ago I friend of mine use to fight for the ufc. He left after they tried to get him to sign a paper stating that the ufc was not a monopoly. Today we can clearly see that it is. Low pay and no gain. Dana going around bragging about how he gets banned from casinos because he won a million 🙄 but then lost 3, million he actually believed their hype and they got him lol~ fighting for free is not what any sport athlete plays for. Nick Diaz & Nate Diaz had a big name but both fighters combined never made more than mcgregor why is that fair? Let’s be honest today we easily see how ufc fighters have gotten ripped off ( Reebok curtain deal) to further steal money from fighters. Enough said.
Thats why ONE Championship I'm Asia is important. And they coming for the UFC and they make more money than the UFC because Asia is by far the biggest market.
Shoot look the PGA Tour. If you don't make the weekend cut you don't get paid anything at all. Imagine going to work and not getting paid anything. That's why I'm for LIV Golf Tour the more great paying options the better for the athletes.
I'm glad that you painted a whole picture of the topic and not just a one sided view on it
Music too loud. It overwhelms the dialog. Why do videograpers keep making that same mistake over and over?
The Ali Act Needs To Be Amended Legislated Into MMA. Former UFC Champion Hall of Fame Randy Couture Is Advocating For It.!
But the other promoters they need to do just as good as UFC because will just out bid them
@@reginaldmerriweather4713 The Bellator President Scott Coker is in Favor of the Ali Act.
Randy is a dummy and so are you. You capitalized evert word of your post. The Ali Act would ruin MMA as it did boxing.
Agreed. Fighter pay will go up significantly
The ufc spends millions a year to keep it from coming to mma
All of the them should protest and not show up for a major ppv event. Pull a lock out.
Very interesting point! So like a strike for a UFC ppv event in order to increase pay?
@@bloodsportfilms exactly lol i dont think
Itll ever happen though
@@youssefhamidi8152 we never know honestly 🤷🏽♂️ the NFL players did it in the past maybe the UFC fighters will someday
That would be so stupid if they did that UFC could cut all the small irrelevant fighters who dared to try to ruin their ppv and where do they go than no where cause they don't have big enough names and all the big fighters would get fined from the UFC for not applying to the ppv that they signed on there own contract and fans wouldn't side with them a small amount will but not the majority remember when Jon Jones refused to fight at ppv and they were forced to cancel it the UFC fans piled on him angrily I like your morals but not the idea a more better solution is fighters to get big in the UFC and when that are huge then threaten to leave so the UFC can offer more expensive payment it what Francis f,ed up on he should taken the Jones fight and than if he won be the biggest and most wanted free agent.
@@KyleDadngannou still got that fury fight though hes done pretty well in the end
They are the highest paid fighters in the world, which is nuts. A tiered salaried position would be awesome. Healthcare, 50k, 75k, 100k, on up dependent on time in and victories. A union is needed.
Strikeforce paid my buddy $150 in gas, a hotel room, and $100 casino voucher one time.
Cody Mckenzie is a good example, came down from Alaska off fishing boats to fight short notice. He made more fishing 😂
Nice balanced documentary.
By far the most honest breakdown I’ve seen on the subject, No BS and plenty of facts to back up the message, great video 👏
Glad you enjoyed!
The UFC needs to get rid of that reebok contract and let these fighters get their own sponsors. Some fighters lost 6 figures when the UFC signed that contract.
The UFC has used Venom as the gear sponsor for several years. Ditched Reebok long ago.
Are you just out of the jail for ten years?
I used to head to mma junkie and read results of shows and it always blew me away how low the pay was especially for the undercard fighters. Now this is in the mid 2000s just before and just after TUF. Once that hit the sport blew up as we all know. Even a couple of years after the first TUF it blew me away that guys would get $1000 to $3000 for an undercard bout. No way that would even cover a proper fight prep. Hell it probably wouldn't cover your food and supplement alone. The sport was huge even when it was growing. We all saw the clothing lines, fighters were getting sponsorship deals with supplement companies, etc, but it was just pathetic how much a lot of those fighters were paid.
Because Dana is greedy. The end.
Dana is not greedy. He is strong businessman.
...not to defend Dana per se, but it’s not like Dana is the one choosing what to pay people. He’s the frontman, the face, he deals with the fighters, the media, oversees things as a whole
But the UFC is a multi-Billion dollar company. They have a whole team of people that assess their assets and expenditures, determine the optimal strategies for maximum profits, weigh risk vs reward, etc, etc.
@@ValpremierShrewd* businessman
He doesn’t even own it
Very interesting video.
I think the reebook/venom deal is the bigges problem. NBA and soccer player havetheir shoe deals, amd it is a lot of money.
Fighters involve in a platform like the ufc could be making huge money for sponsors. Maybe UFC could get a cut like 10-20%.
I still think the UFC fighters are underpaid.
Former UFC Champion Randy Couture is Advocating For the Ali Act To Be Amended Legislated Into MMA.
UFC back in the day, charged every sponsor 100k to be able to even get a chance to sponsor them on their show.
They are. Remer the biggest UFC Fighter ever McGregor didn't get filthy filthy rich until he did a boxing match. That says it all.
"This is why they call it a business...... and some it is none of yours." - CS best line ever. Also, that Venum deal is shit. Of course its only good for the brand no one ever heard of.
Great documentary, first time viewer and now subbed. Great pacing and you don't sound like a bot!
Welcome aboard!
Superbly produced doc
The difference between boxing and the UFC is the promoter works for the fighter in boxing. And in the UFC that role is reversed. So inboxing the promoter is trying to get as much money as he can for his promotion as well as the fighter. It's the opposite in the UFC. The UFC promotion is trying to get as much as it can for the promotion and then it will give to the fighter what it thinks the fighter deserves.
Loved this video man! Please make more I really enjoyed this!
Dana White controls everything. He’s making millions per event. The fighters are just making thousands. Once you’re no good anymore, you’re discarded like a bottle cap. Dana White ain’t stupid.
How can Dana white pay 50% when he gives the nelk boys 250,000 birthday presents
Dana white lying to us fighters cant speak on there contract it gag clause in there contract UFC only sport that don’t pay enough
women athletes everywhere reading this 0_0
Very well done documentary going beyond the headlines, looking at the numbers and providing both sides of the argument!
Great video
Showed insights from both sides
Amazing amazing work
Bottom line: Almost every middle class American tries to save/invest anywhere near 1 million to retire. Those making millions and still going broke are stupid to now manage their finances well. They get caught up in a lavish lifestyle of $$$, multiple exotic cars, gambling, and expensive women. Look at many of the athletes who go broke bc of their lavish lifestyle. Athletes should have a trusting and good financial advisor/agent to help them retire after their career.
These are professional athletes. They have to pay for a large amount of medical care (both while competing and when retired), they have to pay their training camp, they will not be able to work in this career more than a few years and once they are out they will likely not be able to work in any job at the same capacity they could before due to brain damage.
This isn’t as cut and dried as a typical 9-5
@andreahighsides7756 Understandable, but the UFC has places in their facilities for their athletes when they are hurt. Just like a musician who makes millions on a 1 hit wonder, people will have to manage their finances. I was a former athlete as well in college, but I knew that many athletes need a supplemental income years after they retire when they are pro. I have two friends who played in the NFL who had good agents help them supplement their income- one owns a few car washes in the Dallas area. Another owns a few kiosks in the airport. They both made the league minimum and remain not working after their 10 year careers
@@brianm6888 the UFC literally kicks athletes out the door into the street without shoes after their fights
@@andreahighsides7756
If Connor McGregor files for bankruptcy like many millionaire athletes/musicians, he did not need to have a Lamboeghini yacht, dock it at Monaco for over a million dollars a day, and have a fleet of sportscars each worth more than my house.
He could easily put aside 1 million of that money and live a modest lifestyle. Afterall, many of us are trying to make near a million to retire.
I thought DC was going to say they asked for the million back after the Rumble fight lol.
love the free music...very professional
There is literally thousands of boxers that are unheard of to the mainstream public even some armchair fans that are making more than most of the top 15 in every weight division of the UFC
If Dana white doesn’t change the way things are structured very soon he will loose control of the MMA world
He already is. One Championship in Asia is bigger abd makes more money.
The best story on pay. I just subscribed. Keep up the good work!
Welcome aboard!
Fighter pay isnt the issue. Its costs of fighting. UFC should pay for the medical tests, food, coaches, travel. All of it went into the fight so why should fighters have to pay to fight. UFC should have some sort of per diem for each fight.
that's a good point, basically provide employee benefits!
This is incredibly uninformed
@@TheTrayainform us
When a fighter is under contract for a fight all their medical expenses are covered. All their travel is covered.
So...If they got payed more they could afford all of that
Great video. From dramatic to beautiful ending. Great Documentary 🎉
Glad you enjoyed it!
There is a problem with your math. You're getting $160,000 from taking average PPV earning per fighter and just taking 20% of that. It doesn’t work that way. Most fighters never get more than 10 fights. Fighters with less than 10 fights aren't even making $50k a year unless they consistently get Perf. Of the night or Fight of the Night. Almost no one is doing that.
Most of the fighters are making very average salaries, or below average salaries to get the shit beat out of them.
It's a rough rough life for not a lot of money.
This is all without getting into paying managers, trainers, rent, taxes, and healthcare. If you think healthcare premiums are bad, see what it looks like when you get beat up for a living.
I love your point, the truth is it's that it's not so obvious to fix fighter pay. Im not sure myself whats the solution, I would love for them to make more but once they earn more they fight less, look at Khamzat he fights once a year only, he could be making more but he won't just fight anybody since he takes in factor the championship title....which will earn him more money. And thats the average they make when you combine all the fighters together, its not a specific way to explain how much a fighter makes because it depends per individual but its still a metric that can be use to explain the general concept
@bloodsportfilms Khamzat doesn't fight because he's wanted for questioning in connection with war crimes. He can't fight in any country that will extradite him.
BloodyElbow has done a detailed breakdown of UFC fighter pay based on the civil action lawsuit against Zuffa. Basically, the profit split for the fighters is around 17-18%, where as in most other sports it is closer to 50%. Look at tennis, the ATP tour recently announced a new profit sharing split where fighters who are not in the top 100 are going to be supported more because it is very difficult to cover the costs of travel and training. The UFC has grown so much because they keep a lions share for themselves (the owners).
Even the top earners in the UFC like Conor, Jon Jones, Ronda, GSP, Anderson were all underpaid when you consider how many PPVs they helped sell.
Great work
Thank you so much 😀
People like to compare boxing revenue. But even in boxing only the main event gets the majority of the revenue. Undercard is severely underpaid.The UFC is an actual company with employees. They have bottom lines. Boxing is standalone per whatever the main event is.
Great video bro. 👊
Great documentary!
It's really easy to spend a fucton of money in the US. Just before the crash of 08, I'd kept track of my spending and realized I was spending $900 a month on food. This was because I was eating out every meal at "reasonable" places. I started cooking at home and got it down to $250-$300 a month. The trouble is, you start making OK money and a $20 or $30 dinner doesn't seem excessive.
Wait till yall see how much I make in a warehouse working everyday busting my azz
UFC fighters are the top fighters in the world. And they’re making less than you due to training costs etc
Right I’ve got a bad back at 30 from the army, such is life
Great Documentary. Youbdeserve su much more views. Not biased and objective to both sides. My opinion.
Thank you!!
Let's be honest, Dana white has a heart. Buisness is buisness but, when u hear Dana get emotional, when u hear of what he donates, hear his voice tone, guys a realist and tbh, I love listening to press conference after ufc and what he has to say. He's direct, and sure will be a hero to more, than an enemy, easy. Look at what the guy has directed, put some respect on his name.
He's practically a billionaire, God bless his gigantic heart for donating peanuts.. like what the fuck are you going to offer with healthcare for these guys? Just paying them a fair salary avoids a bunch of bullshit.. Yeah he's got a heart, yeah, healthcare helps, but if they're getting scammed, which we don't know, then they are..
@@MF-kr4hfno one is forcing these guys to sign contracts with UFC. They can go try boxing like Ngannou did, PFL, Bellator. Dana is giving the fans what they want because they keep tuning in by the millions. Lastly, funny how you sh*t on a guy for donating money he doesn’t have to because you don’t think it’s enough. My guess is you hate Dana because he is rich so no matter what he donates you will still b*tch. This coming from a guy who probably drops a $5 bill once a year at Christmas in the Salvation Army bucket.
This video needa WAYYY MORE VIEWS
I like this video but question: Where do you factor in the # of fighters? 18% to 578 fighters compared to 50% to 70 fighters is significantly different. That’s often a talking point that is missed. Yes UFC could pay out more to fighters but they also have a significantly larger roster meaning less per fighter regardless. Especially those 1 and done fighters that lose a fight and are tossed aside.
The UFC back in 2021 had about the same amount of fighters than Bellator. Close to 500 fighters for each company.
This research was made by a reporter where these numbers were taken from legal documents due to their lawsuit.
But for those 1 and done fighters thats tough to find out since it can happen in every company. By now the UFC has more fighters tho, Dana mentioned at least 600 a few weeks ago.
the nil pays about 50% and they have over 1600 players
Example 1: Everyone makes a base salary of 72,000 a year. Everyone fights 3 times a year and you get your paycheck for a 4 month period on fight night Or the day after. (every fight you miss you forfeit 4 months equivalent in pay except for cases of injury as determined by the sanctioning body)the number 15 guy makes an extra 50k a year on up to the number 1 contender who makes an extra 500k a year and the division Champion makes 1,000,000 (or more) a year plus PPV points. Locker room bonuses, POTN, FOTN bonuses are still paid out to incentivize skill. The numbers can be tweaked obviously but by golly I think I solved it!
RIP BONNAR
Bonnar begged dana to pay to save his life and he didn't. Yet he still says thanks to Bonnar and Forrest for kickstarting his career
@@slicingonions4398 I can’t stand that guy but you reap what you sow
Music a bit loud. You should turn it down a notch or 2
Quoting Dana white “the worst thing about fighters is that they get 80% of my money”.
Wow
I love the sport, but I find it increasingly difficult to support the business. I can’t in good conscience support a business that trade’s profits for a persons well being.
UFC’s fighter pay so bad there’s gotta be a documentary on it😂
I literally shed tears inside when Stephan Bonnars clip came. RIP Legend.
Sad music plays while the fighters talk about their pay 😂
When UFC video game first came out, some fighters were forced to sell their likeness in perpetuity For $1500 or risk, having their contract. Terminated.
Great Doc!!! Love that you showed both sides. The main point for me was how Dana takes care of his fighters, let pettis use the PI after he left for his mental health, told Nate whatever you need this is your house, tons of donations to struggling fighters going through issues, the 1-million-dollar surprise checks to fighters even after they lose! Dana is a Legend, and the UFC is beyond a great company.
It's just not worth it becoming a UFC fighter. Having to put up with Dana, CTE, cauliflower ears.
100% if u fight for a living your either desperate or slightly insane at least
@@Stick_Chronicor you can't do an office job without feeling dead inside
Good amount of those guys came from a life of poverty and a troubled past, for some it wasn’t much of a choice
I never understood why they never made some ear protection when training on the floor
Us fans, we are so used to seeing the big stars earn millions so we dont ever think about those $50K fight of the night or KO of the night bonuses are literally life-changing money for the fighters lower on the card
Do you know who else is broke? Me and most people I know....
🤣🤣🤣 GOAT comment!
You’re not an elite level fighter who spent their whole lives training while not paid.
@@PersonPersons-kh3bgLighten up. Where's your sense of humour?
When Dana pulled the ability for the fighters to have their own sponsors is when I lost interest in the UFC. Their sponsorships allowed them to supplement what little income the UFC gave them for risking their lives each time they walked into that cage. Dana, Frank, and Lorenzo made a fortune off these guys and threw them scraps.
I remember when Jared Cannonier was interviewed after a fight and said that he was broke and needed more money. He has something like 5 kids, but he is from Dallas, TX where (at the time) the cost of living was lower than many other cities and according to a web search his net worth is estimated at about $1 million. That puts him in the upper class. All the fans who think UFC fighters aren't paid enough need to look at their own paychecks first.
A google search isn’t reliable
@@PersonPersons-kh3bg No but I doubt a fighter that is headlining a card, especially ppv events, are "broke" compared to the average American.
@@paulsmith5611 You can’t compare headliners on PPV to the average American. Even then, top 5 guys in the division are paid a Walmart manager salary. These are the top athlete’s in the world. It’s like you get mad at people in the NFL getting more than you so you group fighters in with them… The average salary of an AHL hockey player is higher than the average UFC fighter. These fighters weren’t paid all the years it took training, and won’t be paid after their careers, with a guarantee of brain damage
Extremely underrated video
Whats Bellator pay?... not as much as UFC.
Exactly. And they did give a fighter an awful deal of 250$ to win and 250$ to show
Thats 500$ if he wins... its crazy, slap leagues pays more lol
With these lousy contracts (pay) in UFC, they should at least have some sort of health insurance and professional support when it comes to mental health, and equal to ALL fighters under their contract! - Especially at the end, or after their career.
Protest and unionize!?!? The highest paid fighters would never! Because that means they’d get paid less and feel like they’ve worked harder than the next guy who’s struggling to make ends meet! A fighters union won’t happen.
Dang, I'm only 2 minutes in and I'm very impressed. Great job on this documentary
Fighters aren’t underpaid. Jalin Turner just made around $200,000 in a few minutes because he was willing to take a fight short notice and has the style & skill to earn a Performance of the Night bonus. Guys want to fight 1-2 times a year, be boring, get too out of shape outside of a camp, don’t want to start a gym, remain one-dimensional strikers so now they’re scared to take a short notice fight with a grappler, and still want to live super comfortably. So many ways to make money just with “UFC Fighter” attached to your name. Sell courses. Do seminars and camps like jiu jitsu guys and wrestlers do. Say funny things during press conferences like Andre Fili just did. So many options
Are you a fighter???
@@mindshiftmastermind6520 he is not. 👍
financial knowledge is important but the expenses in pro fighting way way more than you realise..... one bad injury and it can run your dry in one go if yo knoe how much hospital bills are specially in the cases like surgery then recovery then rehabilitation and then try to get back o track...
Dana treats them like employees
That is what confuses me. How does Dana White get away with calling them? Independent contractors they sign exclusive contracts with the UFC everything what’s independent?
Great job breaking down the economics on this. Interesting to see
Pay controversy aside, Dana earned my respect when he stood against the cancel culture and fraudulent Pharma companies during Covid.
Amen
Great video , thanks for posting
Glad you enjoyed it