Dana White has pushed back hard against growing calls for UFC fighter minimum salaries to be set in line with the WNBA’s new pay structure.
WNBA players are now guaranteed at least $270,000 per year under a recent collective bargaining agreement, a sharp rise from a previous minimum of $66,000. Many UFC fighters, by contrast, start on contracts paying $12,000 to fight with an additional $12,000 for a win, with one example progression cited as $12,000/$12,000, then $14,000/$14,000, then $16,000/$16,000 over three fights, totaling at best $84,000 in a year.
“Fighter pay has gone up every year, and it will continue to go up as long as we continue to be successful,” White said, before drawing a clear line on comparisons. “But to compare it to the WNBA, that’s ridiculous.”
White rejected the idea of guaranteeing high minimum salaries for new UFC fighters who are still proving they belong in the promotion. “First of all, if you come into the UFC, let’s say you sign a three-fight deal, we’re going to find out if you even belong in the UFC. I should pay you $370,000 to see if you belong in the UFC?”
The UFC has increased Performance of the Night and Fight of the Night bonuses from $50,000 to $100,000 and added a standard $25,000 finish bonus for knockouts or submissions. White contrasted that structure with boxing and other models, including Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions, which recently held its first MMA card on Netflix with a minimum $40,000 flat fee.
“[Minimums] have increased,” White said, adding that the promotion has almost 1,000 fighters under contract. He emphasized, “What we’ve built and what we’ve done has been very successful and guys make lots of money in the UFC and there’s a middle class in the UFC.”
