“Boxers get paid more than MMA fighters, it’s no comparison.” Terrance Crawford sparked a debate during his appearance on the Pound4Pound podcast. He claimed that even undercard boxers receive more money than a majority of the fighters in the UFC. The difference in pay for boxers and mixed martial artists was pretty evident already. Remember the time when Conor McGregor fought Floyd Mayweather? Despite being one of the most celebrated fighters in the UFC, ‘The Notorious’ had a guaranteed pay of $30 million. Meanwhile, ‘Money’ had a guaranteed purse of $100 million.

The difference in the money that the fighters earn in MMA and boxing has indeed troubled the fighting community. So today, let’s compare the fighter payout and see if the gap between UFC and boxing is really that enormous. 

Comparing UFC unranked fighter payout with undercard boxing purses

For the UFC, fighters are divided into three tiers – low, medium, and high. The newest unranked fighters fall in the lowest tier. As per reports, these fighters often get signed for somewhere around $10K to $30K. However, the low-tier fighters can keep on growing. With enough wins under their name, the fighters can gain popularity and get a middle-tier contract. This usually ranges from $80K to $250K for each fight.

And the highest tier is for the champions and stars who can attract a humongous crowd to their bouts. These fighters, like Dustin Poirier, Jon Jones, and Islam Makhachev, can get $500K to $3 million for showing up to a fight. On top of their base salary, the UFC fighters also have a chance to get their hand on a significant amount as a win bonus. They can also receive an additional $50K if they grab the Performance of the Night or the Fight of the Night bonus. 

Meanwhile, the boxers receive a paycheck depending on the kind of event they fight at. While the paychecks for UFC fighters have rarely gone below $8K, some records revealed that the entire payout of a boxing event was equivalent to that of a single UFC fighter in the middle tier. When Mauricio Herrera and Ruslan Provodnikov fought for a second time on ESPN 2 Friday Night Fights, the total payout for the event was $46,300, which is less than what middle-tier fighters make in the UFC. You might argue that it’s because the Friday Fight Night was a small event.

But when Jose Ramirez won $1M for defeating Richard Commey in 2023, about 10 fighters in the undercard got below $8K. This simply meant that the boxers who had a better reach and larger fanbase got the better part of the purse. Champions, indeed, get the highest amounts, and that travels in millions. But it seemed like Crawford’s comparison between paychecks for UFC and boxing was different from reality.

Now, Dana White and Sheikh Turki Alalshikh have joined hands to enter the realm of boxing. They plan on revamping the boxing world and making the sport great again. And for that, the duo has already planned the pay structure for the fighters. Not too long ago, the numbers were leaked. Let’s take a look at them.

Dana White’s TKO Boxing pay structure leaked

According to the leaked documents, the payment system was divided into 5 tiers. First, were the unranked fighters, who’d get $20K for a single fight. With a few wins, they could indeed rise up above and enter the rankings. Fighters ranking from #5 to #10 would receive $50K for a single fight. And those who entered the ranks #3 and #4 were entitled to $125K per fight. Of course, the championship challengers would have the chance to get richer by $375K. And the champions would be the richest with $750K per title defense. 

Needless to say, the numbers for the new inductees are indeed higher than those of the UFC fighters. But when it comes to the champions and star performers, the paychecks soar into millions. No doubt, the unranked and mid-tier fighters getting $20K to $125K was like a dream come true for the boxers. With a structured ladder, things would actually get more interesting with the passage of time. And then, we can expect the stars to earn more than what was listed in the leaked document. 

What are your thoughts on TKO Boxing’s pay structure? Do you think fighters like Tank Davis and Tyson Fury would like the pay structure? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.