Lesnar/Carwin Pay

[CardiffWanderer]

http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/UFC-116-S...an-Carwin-25456

 

According to Sherdog Lesnar is going to earn 400,000 win or lose where Carwin's base pay is going to be just 40,000. That is crazy! I'm not sure if Lesnar is being paid far too much or Carwin too little (or most likely a bit of both) but it seems ridiculous that two men going against each other one on one should have such a big difference.

 

I suppose nothing will change until someone can ever rival the UFC or fighters get better organised but it still seems astonishing to me.

[Guest]

I dont think its out of line.

 

Carwin simply isnt the draw that Lesnar is... yet. Dosnt matter what you put on the co-main or the under card or the pre-lims, people are buying this event to see Brock get his arse kicked and thats just the way it is... i expect Carwin to win and move up the ladder here, but the bottom line is Brock is the champion, given what Zuffa are turning in profits on these cards i almost think he is under payed at 400,000 base given his position in the company.

 

And lets remmber it isnt like Brock is just some guy 5 fights deep... he was a legitimate star before he joined UFC, and in some circles even before he joined WWE...

 

Do i think Carwin needs more money? sure.. but if he was stil earning under half what Brock was... id still be fine with it.

[FrankyFin]

well UFC is selling "the dream" to their fighters. as much as most fighters dont get paid reasonable early on of course there is the chance that one becomes a house-hold-name and then make a lot of money ... getting that ppv-cut and basicly at least a million per fight. in addition to being a good fighter you need to be good at talking, hyping, politics .. marketable basicly, or at least have a great manager. or the UFC just waits and waits .. like if youre a Yushin Okami type of guy untill you finally lose and have you start at near zero . different people just get paid very differently despite putting the same work into it and having success that youd think would be worth more.

[Guest]

I'd say they are both under paid for fighting as Mayweather makes $20-$30 million a fight in boxing.

[Guest]

I was surprised actually how little Carwin earns from this (especially if he loses). Doesn't seem up there at all with many other pro athletes, or even just a lot of regular people if you think this is only his second fight this year. Reportedly Lesnar earnt $2-3 million for UFC 100, so he must have a big PPV bonus tied onto that as well. Lesnar's wage (while massive) doesn't seem unfair considering he does sell a shitload of PPV's and the amount of money he makes Zuffa

[CardiffWanderer]

I was surprised actually how little Carwin earns from this (especially if he loses). Doesn't seem up there at all with many other pro athletes, or even just a lot of regular people if you think this is only his second fight this year. Reportedly Lesnar earnt $2-3 million for UFC 100, so he must have a big PPV bonus tied onto that as well. Lesnar's wage (while massive) doesn't seem unfair considering he does sell a shitload of PPV's and the amount of money he makes Zuffa

 

He'll make a dollar every PPV sale (according to some reports) so win or lose he will be minted.

 

Thinking about it logically, Lesnar probably isn't underpayed but surely Carwin is. He is making less than Luis Figo did in 3 days at his time at Real Madrid and Barcelona.

 

 

[Guest]

He'll make a dollar every PPV sale (according to some reports) so win or lose he will be minted.

 

Thinking about it logically, Lesnar probably isn't underpayed but surely Carwin is. He is making less than Luis Figo did in 3 days at his time at Real Madrid and Barcelona.

 

If you want to go down that road he is earning less than any top football (Soccer) player does. Cristiano Ronaldo, Rooney, Messi, Terry, Lampard, Torres, Gerrard, and man many others all earn well over 100K per week whether they are even playing or not.

 

Lesnar's huge pay disparity between him and Carwin is likely part fuelled by the fact he will have earned very good money in the WWE when he was one of the big draws over there.

 

[Guest]

carwins deal was negotiated before he got to the point he is. obviously wen it comes to next negotiations, he should get a significant bump, win or lose. its still quite low but hey, he signed it

[Guest]

carwins deal was negotiated before he got to the point he is. obviously wen it comes to next negotiations, he should get a significant bump, win or lose. its still quite low but hey, he signed it

 

 

This. His last two fights were over "name" fighters in Mir and Gonzaga, but he hasn't fought anyone of note prior to that. I would expect him to get a huge pay increase his next contract.

[jacky67]

Thinking about it logically, Lesnar probably isn't underpayed but surely Carwin is. He is making less than Luis Figo did in 3 days at his time at Real Madrid and Barcelona.

 

True but there is more money in soccer and a match at least every week .

[jonbonesjones]

ik i'm gonna sound like a dana apologist but

 

This should be a great week for Dana White commentary on the fight game. A thorn in his side, Fedor Emelianenko just lost over the weekend and now he gets to promote the biggest heavyweight fight in the history of the UFC leading into UFC 116. Mike Landsberg from TSN's "Off The Record" in Canada jumped the gun on the rest of us by getting a sit down with White. Like no one else who has access to the UFC president, Landsberg goes at White. He loves to poke and prod. In trying to ask about fighter salaries, this was a good smarmy delivery (4:04 mark).

"You were an agent, right? You represented the big guys," said Landsberg. "You think Shane Carwin's agent did a good job negotiating him only $40,000 for this fight?"

 

 

Landsberg referenced the number Carwin released last week when telling MMA Junkie that on paper the maximum he would make fighting in the main event at UFC 116 was $80,000 ($40,000 to win, $40,000 to show).

White chuckled and then fired back, "Shane Carwin's gonna make a lot of money for this fight."

White confirmed that the overall number wasn't accurate.

"I don't like people knowing about the money. I don't like people knowing about our business. Believe me when I tell you, these guys make a lot of money."

Apparently Carwin isn't so confident otherwise he wouldn't have mentioned the salary and the lack of a back end pay-per-view bonus.

The natural followup would've been, "well give us an idea of how much for some of the big-name fighters."

White probably wouldn't have answered but Landsberg left us hanging a bit.

The UFC calls the extra money that fighters make above and beyond their stated paydays, discretionary bonuses. We're guessing White doesn't want to make salaries a central theme before each fight. If they knew exactly what others on the card or past cards had made, you could potentially have a situation where fighters could openly complain about their salaries. On the flip side, by making total moneys handed out public, White and the UFC could end the perception that the fighters are only getting a tiny portion of the total cash generated by each card and between card

[Guest]

i actually read the interview carwin gave and he did insinuate that he does get extras from the ufc.i remember he said sth like, the ufc has been very good to myself and my family. plus he also said he gets from sponsors and shit. he wasnt like bitchin about his pay or anything.

[Guest]

MMA top draw against boxing's top draw:

Brock $400,000 vs Mayweather $40-60,000,000

 

Even Mosley earned five times the amount of Brock. UFC is not paying their fighters what they deserve. Second best heavyweight in MMA earning only $40,000 is pathetic. That's nowhere near what he should get for being in the main fight of an event selling over 1 million PPV's. There are second division football players in the sucky Belgian league earning more than him and they don't even want to film that crap.

[dontcareaboutmyid]

Here's the post wehre someone says if the fighters didn't like the contracts they wouldn't sign them.

 

Listen, myself I make roughly 1500 a month after taxes. Its not the most fun work but its a living and I have a little time to do what I want and some good benefits

 

If a fighter fights 4-5 times a year and they're on the low end of things, they're still coming out towards 12000 to 15000 a year, which in some areas is a decent living. Tie that into sponsorship cash, bonuses, a gym backing you if you show potential and its a pretty decent living for doing something you love to do. The potential for pay increase is staggering in relation to any other job market out there. In three years you're looking at multiplying your yearly pay by at least 3 and only goes up from there.

 

And to attempt to compare boxing to mma is stupid. Sure the big boys are making millions. But the professional boxer is normally starting out at 500 a fight.

 

UFC is on the record since ufc 61 to have a minimum pay of 2000$ a fight. Most starting fighters sign a 4-6 fight contract which can be complete within 1-3 years and if you're performing well, that figure jumps.

 

What it all boils down to is this, if the fighters didn't like the contracts they wouldn't sign them.

[djohn]

Here's the post wehre someone says if the fighters didn't like the contracts they wouldn't sign them.

 

Dude! You called it! It's like.. you already knew!

 

 

Psychic?

[Guest]

At least they get paid if they lose.

 

Gladiators paid with their lives.

 

Seriously tho, they don't get paid enough and zuffa are making bucks!!!!

 

 

[Guest]

At least they get paid if they lose.

 

Gladiators paid with their lives.

 

Seriously tho, they don't get paid enough and zuffa are making bucks!!!!

 

LMAO

[Guest]

SF fighters don't get 1/4 of what Carwin gets except for Money loving Fedor of course.

[Guest]

SF fighters don't get 1/4 of what Carwin gets except for Money loving Fedor of course.

thats because SF doesnt make 1/4 that the ufc does

[CardiffWanderer]

At least they get paid if they lose.

 

Gladiators paid with their lives.

 

Seriously tho, they don't get paid enough and zuffa are making bucks!!!!

 

After 115 BC Gladiators only fought to the death in one festival every 4 years and that was limited usually to a real gladiator and a convict with no training that was scheduled for execution, under the conscript of Julius Caesar and Octavian (before known as Octavius (before battling Mark Antony) and Caesar Augustus (once the first Emperor of Rome) and for the period AD222 -235 under the reign of Severus.

[Guest]

After 115 BC Gladiators only fought to the death in one festival every 4 years and that was limited usually to a real gladiator and a convict with no training that was scheduled for execution, under the conscript of Julius Caesar and Octavian (before known as Octavius (before battling Mark Antony) and Caesar Augustus (once the first Emperor of Rome) and for the period AD222 -235 under the reign of Severus.

 

thanks mate, i really wanted to know all that

[Guest]

And to attempt to compare boxing to mma is stupid. Sure the big boys are making millions. But the professional boxer is normally starting out at 500 a fight.

 

UFC is on the record since ufc 61 to have a minimum pay of 2000$ a fight. Most starting fighters sign a 4-6 fight contract which can be complete within 1-3 years and if you're performing well, that figure jumps.

 

What it all boils down to is this, if the fighters didn't like the contracts they wouldn't sign them.

Starting MMA fighters don't earn more than $500 a fight. UFC consists of 150 of the best MMA fighters in the world. $2000 per fight is pathetic. Most of them fight once or twice and get cut. They earned $4000? WOW! You compare your salary to the ones of the best professional athletes in a sport.

 

They sign their contracts because there are no better contracts out there for MMA fighters. That doesn't mean they get what they deserve. What a stupid argument.

[Guest]

Starting MMA fighters don't earn more than $500 a fight. UFC consists of 150 of the best MMA fighters in the world. $2000 per fight is pathetic. Most of them fight once or twice and get cut. They earned $4000? WOW! You compare your salary to the ones of the best professional athletes in a sport.

 

They sign their contracts because there are no better contracts out there for MMA fighters. That doesn't mean they get what they deserve. What a stupid argument.

 

 

Boxers get paid crap. you may not make much as a rookie in the UFC who sucks but scraped together a 5-0 record. But if you suck that bad you dont deserve anything. All you have to do in the UFC is win a couple fights verses other noobs more often than not. If you cant do that you are lucky to get the pay day you got. If you win 2-3 fights you will be making a decent pay. 5/5 10/10 etc. Much better than any boxer with less than 10 fights. Go see what a boxer gets. If you dont have 25 fights you dont get shit and noone knows who you are.

 

If the UFC is forced to pay 25K to every bum then they would quit bring in rookies. They would keep bring in old names who are already know like Jeremy Horn who has no future potential. When the UFC can get younger fighters cheaper they can bring in new blood every event and keep the ones who show promise. The good fighters get paid and the suck ones dont. Welcome to the real world.

[Guest]

Another thing people need to realize is the UFC puts most of the money they make back into the sport. Recently NY decided not to vote on MMA setting regulation back at least a couple years. Yet one thing you hear everyone involved in pushing say is how much the UFC is invested in getting NY to legalize MMA. How much has Strikeforce invested? Nothing. What about Fedor? Nothing. No other big promotion or fighter has stepped up to help the sport. The UFC has been doing this with every state and many countries. Yes they will make money if successful but thats the only way the system will work. Without a UFC you have chaos like boxing. All fighters are for themselves and noone does anything for the future of the sport. The UFC could pay everyone more. But that takes away from fighting legal battles for MMA, advertising events and fighters current stars and future stars alike.

[CardiffWanderer]

Another thing people need to realize is the UFC puts most of the money they make back into the sport. Recently NY decided not to vote on MMA setting regulation back at least a couple years. Yet one thing you hear everyone involved in pushing say is how much the UFC is invested in getting NY to legalize MMA. How much has Strikeforce invested? Nothing. What about Fedor? Nothing. No other big promotion or fighter has stepped up to help the sport. The UFC has been doing this with every state and many countries. Yes they will make money if successful but thats the only way the system will work. Without a UFC you have chaos like boxing. All fighters are for themselves and noone does anything for the future of the sport. The UFC could pay everyone more. But that takes away from fighting legal battles for MMA, advertising events and fighters current stars and future stars alike.

 

No, there are no numbers to back that statement up. UFC invested few hundred thousand dollars even a million into that campaign it would be no more than 5% of one average card. They have not pushed in investment in gyms and rather than scouting to bring in youngsters they are more inclined to go through and look for failed pro's in other sports, which gives MMA a legitimacy issue.

 

Do the others do anymore? Arguable Strikeforce have done a better job picking up college wrestlers coming out of college but otherwise no they haven't. This is more an indictment of how MMA is currently set up than anything else.

 

On fighter pay

 

It seems that UFC 116 has done around 1.1 Million units. 45 dollars a pop (not including more expensive public licences) makes that event close to 50 million. However even including bonuses the other fighters (outside Lesnar) made just than 2% of Gross. Most sports, your looking at 60% + of gross. UFC fighters are paid far to little.