UFC President Dana White has a knack for pinpointing opportunities that will be gold mines for sports that have a bad reputation, converting them into financially successful entities. Take the UFC for example, which was bought for $2 million and has become a $12.1 billion business under White. But the UFC head honcho did not stop there. He spread his influence into another combat sports genre known as the slap fighting. We never thought that the slaps echoing across the world in organizations such as Punch Club, and Punch Down would engage in a cross-continental journey to the West—in what is called the ‘Power Slap’ league.

This was all possible because of Dana White who started the Power Slap league—the same event that still has drawn the ire of the fight community for the obvious concerns around long-term head trauma. But is Dana White worried? Not at all. Because he senses the potential of this industry right now and wants to make millions from making ‘athletes’ slap each other under a specific ruleset. So, is the Power Slap league pay its fighters well a successful enough venture to pay its participants well? 

Power Slap Fighter’s average salary per fight 

White’s venture with Power Slap League has been under fire ever since its television debut on TBS in 2023. What started out as a joke, with obscure Russian promotions showcasing the bizarre ‘sport’, soon caught the eye of he UFC CEO, who someone sense massive potential in the same. Given the risks associated, White has assured fans that the commission is always trying to improve safety measures to minimize brutality and bad outcomes for fighters. Despite all the dangers associated and skepticism from the fight community, this league is already valued at $750 million.

But despite its popularity, neurologists have advocated strongly against the sport and warned that willingly taking slaps to the face can cause lasting brain damage. So since the athletes are risking themselves through this venture, they should be paid a lot, right? Unfortunately, that is not the case.

It has recently come to light that Power Slap league athletes are paid very little despite the lifelong health risks they take for this sport. Former UFC middleweight fighter Eric Spicely spilled the beans on the salary that the athletes received in this League. For his debut in slap fighting, he was offered $2000 to show and a $2000 victory bonus. Dana White replied to a fan’s concern about the same and said, “[This is] how MMA started too. Boxing undercards make this kind of money still. Educate yourself before you open the YAP.”

In the press conference for the Power Slap League season 1 finale, Dana White revealed that a contender gets paid as much as $45,000. However, there was an account from another athlete who complained about lesser pay as well. In the press conference held during the inaugural event of Power Slap 2, slapper Russel Rivero revealed he couldn’t train for his Slap-Fight with the champion Ayjay Hintz.

The former Power Slap light heavyweight title challenger stated his 9 to 5 job as the reason for this. He said, “It’s been hard to train, I keep saying it but I work. Work is kind of heavy back home, so just do what you can, when you can.But the main thing is just go up there and do what you gotta do.”

Even when the fighter pay is less, White claimed that Power Slap has more social media views than the UFC, WWE, and even the NFL. He has defended the league relentlessly and lambasted viewers who criticize the sport and the payment to its athletes. He posted on Instagram, “Then don’t watch it. This post is for people who do. U know what I do with s–t I don’t like? I don’t pay attention to it, don’t post about it. STFU and pay attention to s–t I do like.”

Okay, so now we’ve got some context on how much slappers get paid in Dana White’s other promotion. But how does the pay compare with UFC athletes? Let’s take a closer look.

Power Slap vs UFC earning comparison

When compared to the payment that the fighters receive in the UFC, even low tire fighters in the promotion can expect a compensation between $12000 and $30,000 per fight. On the other hand, the higher-tier fighters can earn $500,000 or more. Unfortunately for the athletes in Power Slap, it’s less as Dana White said himself.

During the press conference following the Power Slap League season 1 finale, he revealed that athletes get paid almost $45,000. White claimed, “He’s gonna walk out of here with $45,000, you know what I mean? We’re gonna have stories written tomorrow, ‘Oh this is disgusting, these people did it for $45,000’. This is how this sh*t works. Some of these guys probably don’t make $45,000 a year.“

However, in stark contrast, the lower-tier fighters in UFC who have just entered the promotion from Dana White’s Contender Series have a minimum purse of $10,000. Compared to that, even veterans in Power Slap League get way less payment compensation.

Former UFC star Paige VanZant has competed in the Power Slap League and had a victorious debut in June 2024, but she lost a point and drew her second match in October 2024. She completed her ‘bucket list’ item in her combat sports career—but what about her payment compared to the UFC?

She has dabbled in the UFC, BKFC, and even Power Slap and has not complained about the payment in any of these organizations! She earned a victory bonus of $2,000 on top of her base salary at Power Slap 8. VanZant decided to spend the whole of her paycheck at the UFC CEO’s after-party. In a video clip shared by the promotion on 15th July on their YouTube channel, ‘12 Gauge’ was seen saying, “I am so excited I’m gonna go gamble my whole paycheck. I have a feeling that Dana White’s party is going to be very, very fun.”

She also spoke about the pay factor with Bro Bible in a press conference: “I am a businesswoman, I go where I need to to capitalize where I need to.” If it’s about re-inforcing her brand and image, and keep herself relevant, then she hit the nail on the coffin. But in terms of a pay check? Well, that’s a totally different conversation. Regardless, what do you think of Power Slap league’s pay model? Tell us what you think in the comments below.