Demetrious Johnson reveals shocking details about his pay in the UFC

Demetrious Johnson left the UFC in a rare one-for-one swap with ONE Championship in 2018. The long-time UFC flyweight champion recently shared details surrounding his contract with the company, revealing that he was not making nearly as much as one would expect a champion to make.

Breaking: UFC, ONE Championship close to trade involving Demetrious Johnson and Ben Askren. Potential history in the making for MMA -- espn.com/mma/story/_/id…

Johnson, the current ONE Championship flyweight champion, discussed his show and win money, stating:

"When I fought Dominick Cruz, I was under contract. I think I was fighting for 14 and 14. I lost to Dominick Cruz, I made 14k... I got a new contract when I fought Ian McCall the second time. I think I got bumped up to 20 and 20... When I fought John Dodson, I made 23 and 23, then when I fought John Moraga, it probably was about 26 and 26, and then when I fought Joseph Benavidez, I think it was 30 and 30."

Johnson continued:

"I finally got a new contract as a champion and I think it was 125 and 50, but I couldn't get pay-per-view points, and that's where a champion makes most of their bang for their buck is the pay-per-view points because if you get on a card with Conor McGregor and he does 2.1 million buys then you just do the f**king math. You're going to make a s**load of money. I never got the opportunity to do that."

Johnson added that while he had defended his belt multiple times, he was making less money than CM Punk, who was earning $500,000 in his second fight with the promotion. The ONE Championship flyweight champion has made more money in each of his fights with his new promotion than he ever did in his UFC career.

Watch Demetrious Johnson's full comments regarding the pay that he earned from the UFC below:

DJ TALKING ABOUT HIS UFC CONTRACT. HE WAS STUCK MAKING 30/30 IN HIS 3RD TITLE DEFENSE. https://t.co/0HZV9Tjcza

Demetrious Johnson discusses his return to the United States

Demetrious Johnson has not fought in the United States of America since leaving the UFC in 2018. That will change in May 2023 as the ONE Championship flyweight champion and Adriano Moreas will face one another in a trilogy bout that will take place in Colorado.

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Johnson discussed his upcoming return, stating:

"I'm super excited. Obviously, I started my career in the United States of America and being able to come back to it this late in my career is amazing so I'm very happy for the fans, the fans over in America, to get the opportunity to see me fight once again."

Johnson and Moreas have split their first two meetings. Moreas picked up a second-round KO in their first meeting, while Johnson ended their second bout with a beautiful flying knee in the fourth-round.

AND NEW! 👑 @MightyMouse 🇺🇸 wins the ONE Flyweight World Title with a walk-off KO of Adriano Moraes!

@PrimeVideo #ONEonPrimeVideo1 #ONEChampionship https://t.co/A3G9dlesyw

Watch Demetrious Johnson discuss fighting in the United States below: