BKFC is really playing a top-notch game, especially before the end of 2024. President David Feldman has announced a huge news and this has got people excited. The promotion that even includes Conor McGregor as a part owner might have a $25 million tournament open to combat sports athletes from any organization in the entire world.

This is a significant step especially since BKFC is UFC’s rival in this game. Feldman teased this announcement on  Sirius XM’s Fight Nation with Alan Jouban and Din Thomas. His verdict was also uploaded on Instagram where he said, “I’m going to announce the biggest tournament in combat sports history, with the largest prize that’s ever been on a tournament in combat sports history. It’s going to be a $25 million prize. We’re going to drop that announcement in 3 weeks.”

This tournament, however, appears to be pure bare-knuckle boxing and the prize money will definitely lure many fighters into the mix. However, when it comes to active UFC fighters, they might not be able to compete since they are bound by a strict contract. That being said, Conor McGregor’s stint in boxing Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2017 has been the only exception. Interestingly enough, McGregor could be key to the tournament’s success.

UFC and BKFC clearly have a huge pay gap and this is evident from the announcement of this huge amount from BKFC. Muhammad Mokaev revealed the same after moving to Brave FC when UFC did not re-sign his contract.

Dana White’s promotion gets questioned on payment

Dana White’s promotion might be successful and has a net worth of over $12 billion, but many fighters have complained about the pay. Mokaev stated on X about Brave FC, “Highest-paid flyweight fighter in the world right now without holding the title @bravemmaf.” On top of that, Matt Brown disclosed the poor pay from UFC on an ES Exclusive interview with Andrew Whitelaw.

He was under Dana White’s promotion for 16 years and even though he garnered a lot of business and gyms post his career, he still was not happy with the fighter pay. Brown revealed that he had a chance to fight for a living and follow his passion but he hated the payment.

He told EssentiallySports’ Andrew Whitelaw, “The worst thing if I gotta be honest, is the money. I get paid—while I’m not complaining, I make good money. But again, it’s not sustainable. You can make a lot of money doing other things, at least at the level I was at. I wasn’t a world champion. Maybe it’s different for a world champion if you’re Conor McGregor, you know, guys like that. But for me, I think I can make more money doing other things.” 

He stated the only solution to this problem was to be vocal about it. The fighters needed to be more upfront about the lesser pay. Do you think after the announcement by BKFC, UFC fighters might speak out? Share your thoughts in the comments below!