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via Getty
LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 07: Francis Ngannou of Cameroon stands in the Octagon before facing Derrick Lewis in their heavyweight fight during the UFC 226 event inside T-Mobile Arena on July 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
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via Getty
LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 07: Francis Ngannou of Cameroon stands in the Octagon before facing Derrick Lewis in their heavyweight fight during the UFC 226 event inside T-Mobile Arena on July 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Fighter’s pay is the burning question in the MMA space. Ahead of his title unification bout against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou led the charge to raise the issue against it. ‘The Predator’ frequently talked about his contracts and his future goals. He was hesitant to re-sign with the UFC, which raised a lot of eyebrows.
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Fans often discuss why fighters should get paid more or why they should be content with what they are getting. The various minds in MMA compare the pay scale of UFC with other major sports like NFL, NBA, MLB, and more. The comparison between boxing and MMA pay is always on fans’ minds.
Apart from these, they often compare other UFC personnel’s pay with fighters like the boss Dana White or the Octagon girls, or even the commentators.
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A post comparing the annual pay of Octagon girl Arianny Celeste, who joined the promotion in 2006, and the baddest man on the planet, the UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, is getting a lot of attention from fans.
However, the UFC fans, who often side with the fighters, found the post quite accurate and gave their reasons for it as well.
UFC fans see no issue in Ngannou and Celeste’s pay comparison
In the past, Celeste has faced a backlash from 6-time UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey for the same topic. However, the fans in the comments section backed the OG Octagon girl and self-proclaimed ‘UFC Mama’ against one of the hardest punchers, Francis Ngannou.
- “She’s been with the company longer goes to more events and negotiated better. Doesn’t Giselle make more than Tom Brady?”
- “Now show the 5-7 mil per fight contact that he was offered that he turned down”
- “Arianny is the OG man, she’s dedicated to the UFC for long time. y’all gotta respect for her”
- “You can fight more than once a year tho”
- “Fights once a year tho lol”
- “that’s bc Arianny Celeste fights more times a year than Francis Ngannou”
- “1 year is longer than 5 rounds. Well deserved.”
- “4 fight in one year = 2400000”
- “Don’t sign the contract if you don’t like it. Or start your own promoting company.”
- “She makes a mil over a year and he makes 600k in 25 mins? I don’t see an issue here.”
- “I mean I can kinda see it she works year round”
- “Wanna make more stay active get kos”
- “She is the best and he is worst HW champion ever”
Fans hailed Celeste for her longtime work with the promotion. Besides, one user had an odd Tom Brady ($250 million) and his Brazilian supermodel wife, Gisele Bündchen ($400 million) analogy to this debate.
Francis Ngannou has refused to sign a new contract with UFC
The heavyweight champion is still fighting on his previous UFC contract when he was not the king of the division. The Cameroon-born fighter has been reluctant to sign a new UFC contract.
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The Predator has talked about his fight contract and how he has lost $7 million till his last bout by not signing a fresh contract with the promotion.
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Ngannou is looking to pursue boxing bouts, chiefly one with Tyson Fury. Former UFC dual champion Henry Cejudo claimed Ngannou could get $40 million for a fight with the undefeated heavyweight boxer.
Fans will hope Ngannou can sit down with UFC President Dana White and have a conversation that leads the fight fans to witness a Stipe Miocic trilogy or a fresh Jon Jones matchup early in 2023.
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What do you make of fans backing veteran Octagon girl over heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou? Share your opinions in the comments below.
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