McGregor: "This is a $40 million year for me. A damn good year"

[Anthony342]

More MMA stars need to start making that kind of money then. At least more top stars. Seems like the pay is at least starting to get better.

[Oldschool5]

He has definitely changed the game! Good for him and hopefully other fighters in the future. Not really a fan but if it opens doors for other fighters its all good.

[Willy Wanker]

The thing is, UFC will reward fighters like McGregor and Rousey because they know how to market themselves beyond just good performances in the cage. And Conor has a whole country behind him, while Ronda has done a lot to spark interest within female fans.

Champions or top fighters who don't draw big numbers will still get lowballed. The UFC aren't just going to pay them more out of the goodness of their hearts or just because Conor is breaking records.

Fighters need to take notes on what Conor is doing, and they shouldn't just think, "that Irish dude is making bank, and so will I!" They need to start making moves on their own and prove they can draw big numbers as well. That's how the UFC works. UFC didn't do much to make Lesnar, Rousey and Conor stars. They did a lot on their own and the UFC did very little other than give them a platform. Once they proved they can draw, the machine got behind them, it doesn't work the other way around.

[Rudyo]

Conor has grown on me lately, for stuff like this but the UFC seriously needs to strip him of the FW title to save face

I know Dana said he'll only have one after the fight but for real this makes the FW look so unimportant.

[Anthony342]

The thing is, UFC will reward fighters like McGregor and Rousey because they know how to market themselves beyond just good performances in the cage. And Conor has a whole country behind him, while Ronda has done a lot to spark interest within female fans.

Champions or top fighters who don't draw big numbers will still get lowballed. The UFC aren't just going to pay them more out of the goodness of their hearts or just because Conor is breaking records.

Fighters need to take notes on what Conor is doing, and they shouldn't just think, "that Irish dude is making bank, and so will I!" They need to start making moves on their own and prove they can draw big numbers as well. That's how the UFC works. UFC didn't do much to make Lesnar, Rousey and Conor stars. They did a lot on their own and the UFC did very little other than give them a platform. Once they proved they can draw, the machine got behind them, it doesn't work the other way around.

True, they won't just automatically be rewarded with higher pay, unless the fighters unionize. Nice pic, Flair is the best ever IMO. Bret Hart the best technical wrestler and a favorite of mine.

[Willy Wanker]

True, they won't just automatically be rewarded with higher pay, unless the fighters unionize. Nice pic, Flair is the best ever IMO. Bret Hart the best technical wrestler and a favorite of mine.

Ric Flair is the real TBE.

[LacedUp]

if I headlined like 3 major PPV's this year and apparently drew 1.6 million for one of them, I'd be pretty pissed with that pay out.

Manny Pacquiao was making that per fight.

Pacquiao never made $40 million per fight outside of the Mayweather fight, so that's completely BS.

[LacedUp]

The thing is, UFC will reward fighters like McGregor and Rousey because they know how to market themselves beyond just good performances in the cage. And Conor has a whole country behind him, while Ronda has done a lot to spark interest within female fans.

Champions or top fighters who don't draw big numbers will still get lowballed. The UFC aren't just going to pay them more out of the goodness of their hearts or just because Conor is breaking records.

Fighters need to take notes on what Conor is doing, and they shouldn't just think, "that Irish dude is making bank, and so will I!" They need to start making moves on their own and prove they can draw big numbers as well. That's how the UFC works. UFC didn't do much to make Lesnar, Rousey and Conor stars. They did a lot on their own and the UFC did very little other than give them a platform. Once they proved they can draw, the machine got behind them, it doesn't work the other way around.

That's the problem with a lot of american fans in all honesty. They don't really get behind their fighters often. Even in their own communities/states. Maybe it's because of all the options. Whereas we've never seen an irish fighter like Mcgregor before.

But at the same time, McGregor is a special case. The dude is unique whether people like it or not. He talks better than anyone the game has ever seen + he's got nasty skills that are fan friendly.

Also, not sure why you say people get low-balled. People have to realize that it's a game of input vs output. There's a reason why UFC has been sold for more than 4 billion whereas Al Haymon is getting more broke by the day. It's exactly because of over paying for no output.

I get that fighters should try and get as much as they can, but also, don't expect a million dollar payday if you're on free tv and collect a $500k gate like most fighters in the UFC.

McGregor can draw millions of PPV buys and near $10million gates. That's Mayweather type numbers and why he gets paid and is so far ahead of everyone.

[Willy Wanker]

That's the problem with a lot of american fans in all honesty. They don't really get behind their fighters often. Even in their own communities/states. Maybe it's because of all the options. Whereas we've never seen an irish fighter like Mcgregor before.

But at the same time, McGregor is a special case. The dude is unique whether people like it or not. He talks better than anyone the game has ever seen + he's got nasty skills that are fan friendly.

Also, not sure why you say people get low-balled. People have to realize that it's a game of input vs output. There's a reason why UFC has been sold for more than 4 billion whereas Al Haymon is getting more broke by the day. It's exactly because of over paying for no output.

I get that fighters should try and get as much as they can, but also, don't expect a million dollar payday if you're on free tv and collect a $500k gate like most fighters in the UFC.

McGregor can draw millions of PPV buys and near $10million gates. That's Mayweather type numbers and why he gets paid and is so far ahead of everyone.

I'll just use Luke Rockhold for example. He claimed he got lowballed by the UFC to fight Jacare in a rematch. He didn't sign anything and held out for a few weeks. UFC decided to pay him more, so now the fight is on.

I see a lot of fighters either whining about the money Conor is making or getting excited thinking that just because he's getting record paydays that they will too just for showing up. He's really just showing everyone that the money is there if you're willing to go the extra mile and a half like he has.

Conor wasn't getting big money when he first joined the UFC either. 76k isn't bad for a first UFC fight, but look how far he's come in just a couple of years.

Will Brooks defended CM Punk's half million paycheck and said on twitter, "that same energy you spend worrying about what he got could be used trying to get your own." He has the right idea.

Fighters like Cat Zingano complaing about getting 5k in her debut fight need to take notes on what Conor is doing instead of complaining and expecting a pay raise just because. Being a great and consistent fighter is where it starts, but that alone won't make you a big draw. She had a chance to prove herself against Ronda and blew it in 14 seconds.

[deathofaclown]

Fighters need to take notes on what Conor is doing, and they shouldn't just think, "that Irish dude is making bank, and so will I!" They need to start making moves on their own and prove they can draw big numbers as well. That's how the UFC works. UFC didn't do much to make Lesnar, Rousey and Conor stars. They did a lot on their own and the UFC did very little other than give them a platform. Once they proved they can draw, the machine got behind them, it doesn't work the other way around.

That probably applies to most sports really. At the end of the day, people like to buy into a character, whether they love them or hate them. Self promotion is the way to make real money. Nobody is just going to offer you huge money just because you can fight, it's business and you have to sell yourself. You don't even need to be a loud mouth, just have a selling point. Like Pacquiao, he had the image of this smiling little Asian guy that was demolishing top fighters in the ring. It was part of the package and it sold. People like Terrence Crawford and Ward are excellent fighters, but they don't really offer anything else. They have no image or personality to sell. A fight only lasts 36 minutes...you need more than that to keep people interested.