UFC 286: Media producer shares fight week incentive pay numbers for Kamaru Usman, Leon Edwards, Justin Gaethje, and more
Media producer Jed Goodman has shared the fight week incentive pay for Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman as well as other fighters featured on this weekend's card.
UFC 286 is set to be headlined by Leon Edwards defending his welterweight title against Kamaru Usman. Their bout marks the trilogy of their long rivalry and sees Edwards make his first walk to the octagon as a champion in front of his home crowd.
Elsewhere on the card is the co-main event between Justin Gaethje and Rafael Fiziev. The bout is already being considered a potential Fight of the Night contender as it features two 155-pounders looking to stake their claim for a run to the title.
Whilst all the fighters on the card have their own personal contracts, each are due an added fight week incentive pay, which is based on how many fights they have had under the UFC banner. The champions also have their own fixed incentive pay, as do the challengers.
Based on the figures shared by @jedigoodman on Twitter, Kamaru Usman is taking home $32,000 this week as the challenger, and Leon Edwards, the champion, tops the list with $42,000.
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Fight Week Incentive Pay:
8 Fighters on Tier 1 - $4K
3 Fighters on Tier 2 - $4.5K
10 Fighters on Tier 3 - $6K
5 Fighters on Tier 4 - $11K
2 Fighters on Tier 5 - $16K
1 Fighter on Challenger Tier - $32K
1 Fighter on Champion Tier - $42K
#UFC286
Justin Gaethje, who will make his 11th walk to the octagon this weekend, is categorized as Tier 4 ($11,000), whereas his opponent Rafael Fiziev is Tier 3 ($6,000).
Check out the full breakdown of fighters and their incentive pay below:
1-3 UFC fights $4K
4 or 5 UFC fights $4.5K
6-10 UFC fights $6K
11-15 UFC fights $11K
16-20 UFC fights $16K
Over 20 UFC fights $21K
Challenger $32K
Champion $42K
(this is not their purse, this is separate money)
Tier 1:
Chris Duncan
Patterson
Ashmoz
Filho
Santos
Christian Duncan
Hadley
Miller
Tier 2:
O'Neill
Mokaev
Murphy
Tier 3:
Fiziev
Dolidze
Shore
O. Morales
Todorovic
Gordon
Carolina
Klein
Herbert
Macedo
Tier 4:
Gaethje
Nelson
Maia
Vettori
Amirkhani
Jack Shore believes Kamaru Usman may be haunted by his KO loss to Leon Edwards
UFC featherweight Jack Shore has stated that Kamaru Usman will be facing pressure he has never felt before when he steps into the octagon to face Leon Edwards for the third time.
At UFC 278, 'Rocky' stunned the MMA world when he snatched the welterweight title from 'The Nigerian Nightmare' with just seconds to go in the final round. The loss was not only Usman's first in the UFC but also the first KO defeat of his career.
Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda MMA this week, Jack Shore gave his take on the main event. 'Tank' feels that Usman will face an entirely new mental game when he meets Edwards and has backed his fellow Brit to get the job done once again:
"Now that he has scored that knockout, roles have switched. There's no altitude over here. I think the pressure is probably gonna be on Usman. You know, as good as Usman is, you can't tell me that knockout five or six months ago isn't in the back of his head. So yeah, I think [Edwards is] gonna do it, I hope he does it."
Check out the full interview here (3:40):