Let us tell you an interesting story about fighter pay in the world’s biggest MMA promotion. But we will need some context! Everyone and their grandma knows that Artem Vakhitov was the last man to beat Alex Pereira in kickboxing. The duo had already fought twice in Glory FC and were one win apiece. This is why fans were ecstatic after Vakhitov won his Contender’s Series clash last year. Surely we would see the Russian in the UFC in the near future, where a possible blockbuster trilogy with the Brazilian waited if everything went right. Unfortunately, Vakhitov turned down a contract with the UFC and is instead returning to his proving ground to challenge Rico Verhoeven for the gold at Glory 100.

But why did the former champ refuse the opportunity to become a global superstar and change his life forever? Well, because the UFC “were not able to offer me more than the standard contract.” This is reported to be $12k show money and a $12k win bonus. Since the Russian fighter had a family to take care of and the UFC refused to negotiate, Vakhitov decided to refuse the deal. This once again highlights that fighter pay remains a pertinent issue in the UFC, with many, including even boxing superstar Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford criticizing it.

Speaking to Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo on their ‘Pound 4 Pound’ podcast, the multiple division champ declared “boxers get paid more than MMA, its no comparison.” But Usman disagreed. “At the top,” the former UFC champ interjected. But Crawford was still skeptical.

“No, as a whole. For instance, UFC, a guy headlining at ‘The Sphere’, they’re probably making a couple of million dollars. But you’ll see a guy on the undercard of a big show probably making more than that guy,” the American boxer said. But Usman was unconvinced. He insisted that while top-level boxers like Crawford and Canelo Alvarez got paid massively better than their UFC counterparts, lowest-tier boxers were almost criminally underpaid.

“Entry level fighters who first fight in the UFC you might make 10 and 10. You go out there and win, it’s $20,000. There are boxers that may be 7,8,10, and [you ask them] ‘You wanna fight this fight,’ [and they’ll say] ‘alright 2,500’. That’s all I mean,” Usman added.

But ‘Bud’ countered with a pretty fair point. “Ok, so let me break it down for you. UFC, that’s like the top of the top. So we talking about the big leagues. So once you make it to the UFC, you in the big leagues now. When I make it to the big leagues, when I’m on TV, I’m making more than you making when you come into the UFC,” he said.

Indeed, the UFC is the biggest stage not only in MMA, but the whole combat sports world. The Dana White-led promotion is by far the most valuable promotion in the fight business, making an annual revenue of $1.4 billion last year. But Henry Cejudo pointed out one aspect of fighting in the UFC, which neither Crawford nor Usman had touched upon.

Henry Cejudo points out the massive difference between boxing and UFC to Terence Crawford

“There’s one thing we can say in the UFC. There’s no running,” Cejudo observed presciently. “How long did you have to go out there and literally chase a guy like Errol Spence before you made it happen? Five years. How long did Floyd Mayweather had to [wait] for fighting Manny Pacquiao? Seven years. In the UFC, Dana White’s like ‘You know what, you don’t wanna fight? Gimme your belt.’ There’s also a pride to be able to say that I’m also fighting the best competition at the right time.”

Indeed, the single biggest complaint boxing fans have is most boxer’s obsession with remaining undefeated and the utter commercialization of the sport. This means that most big stars avoid taking tough fights, leaving fans infuriated. Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, the current face of the sport, for instance, has refused to fight his WBC mandatory, David Benavidez for over two years.

But in the UFC, where the promotion has the power to choose who you fight, this problem is rare. There are a few exceptions like Jon Jones dragging his feet on fighting Tom Aspinall. But even there Dana White has clarified that the promotion will “move on” if ‘Bones’ doesn’t agree to the fight in a reasonable time frame.

And Terence Crawford, who had to chase Errol Spence, then chase ‘Canelo’ was convinced. “I can agree with you on that,” ‘Bud’ told Cejudo. Crawford may have been convinced by the former two-division champ, but most critics are not. An often-cited figure is that the fighters get only 20% of the UFC’s revenue. This is far less than in most other major leagues like the NBA, NFL, and MLB, where athletes get nearly 50% of the revenue.

This has led to a spirited debate between those who feel UFC fighters and underpaid and people like Usman and Cejudo, who defend the business model. What do you think about Kamaru Usman, Henry Cejudo, and Terence Crawford’s debate on UFC fighter pay?