Short-term greediness will be their downfall - Fans slam "dystopian business model" of UFC after PFL purses are disclosed
MMA fans have once again slammed the UFC and its fighter pay after the latest Professional Fighters League (PFL) purses were revealed.
PFL purses were shared after the organization finished its three-event run in Atlanta, Georgia. Former UFC fighter Anthony Pettis was the highest earner, taking home a fight purse of $750,000, despite losing via submission to Stevie Ray.
@shaunalshatti Pettis finally making bank after providing us with so many glorious WEC moments 🥹
Kayla Harrison, who competes in the PFL's women's lightweight division, took home the second highest purse of $500,000. The UFC has been rumored to be interested in Harrison, but the 32-year-old remains where she is. If the Olympic gold medal-winning judoka were to earn half a million in the UFC, she'd be one of the best paid fighters in the organization. So it's no surprise that she's enjoying her time in her current organization.
Check out the tweet on the PFL purses (via MMA journalist Shaheen Al-Shatti's Twitter):
Top PFL purses for the recent three-event Atlanta run:
- Anthony Pettis ($750k)
- Kayla Harrison ($500k)
- Rory MacDonald ($250k)
- Ray Cooper ($200k)
- Magomed Magomedkerimov ($200k)
- Lance Palmer ($170k)
- Brendan Loughnane ($170k)
- Nathan Schulte ($150k)
Not bad! twitter.com/MMAFighting/st…
Fans have let their frustrations at the UFC be heard on social media, with one admitting that the promotion's greed could lead to its downfall:
"The UFC's short term greediness is gonna be it's downfall."
@Shaqkeem1 @shaunalshatti The UFC’s short term greediness is gonna be it’s downfall.
Another fan described the UFC's current model for its fighter pay as "dystopian":
"I don’t think you understand how much money these companies make in rights deals and advertising. PFL isn’t simply a dystopian business model like ufc where they farm every dime of value out of the fighter and give them fractions of what other top athletes receive in revenue"
@brighambgb @shaunalshatti I don’t think you understand how much money these companies make in rights deals and advertising. Pfl isn’t simply a dystopian business model like ufc where they farm every dime of value out of the fighter and give them fractions of what other top athletes receive in revenue
Featherweight fighter Brendan Loughnane has received praise from some fans for the way he's turned his career around. The British fighter appeared on Dana White's Contender Series four years ago but was snubbed by the UFC president despite winning his final fight.
One fan took pleasure in the fact that Loughnane is now earning more money in his current organization than if the UFC had signed him.
@shaunalshatti Brendan Loughnane continuing to prove that he hit the lottery by Dana not choosing him. He’d be making ~50K show money and fighting twice a year.
Ali Abdelaziz hints Kayla Harrison might be making more than half a million from PFL
Dominance MMA Management CEO Ali Abdelaziz has suggested that Kayla Harrison may have made even more than what was revealed.
Abdelaziz put out a cryptic tweet, replying to the post on the PFL fight purses, hinting that Harrison earned more than $500,000:
"You wrong about Kayla champ"
twitter.com/shaunalshatti/…You wrong about Kayla champ 😜 twitter.com/shaunalshatti/…
According to Totalsportal.com, only Julianna Pena, Amanda Nunes, Valentina Shevchenko and Rose Namajunas earn $500,000 per fight in the UFC. Just below them is Miesha Tate, taking home $300,000.
Kayla Harrison is undefeated (14-0) since making her professional MMA debut in 2018. Her most recent performance in Atlanta was a TKO victory over Kaitlin Young in round one.
Should Harrison ever make the switch to the UFC, it would likely make her the highest paid female athlete in the organization.