Jon Jones
After UFC fighters and their reps reportedly voiced opposition to rankings-based pay, the promotion has shifted gears on how the money from from its deal with Reebok will be distributed.
Now, a fighter’s share of the sponsorship pie will be determined by their experience in the UFC’s octagon, according to a Sports Business Journal report.
The new tiered system replaces rankings and instead will use the fighter’s number of bouts in the octagon, with different tiers (1-5 fights, 6-10 fights, 11-15 fights, and 16-20 fights). The UFC said it will formally notify its roster of the change in the coming weeks.
What remains unknown is the exact dollar figures for each tier. In an interview this past January with MMAjunkie Radio, veteran lightweight Joe Lauzon said the numbers would be coming in May.
The SBJ report said the UFC considers the experience-based scale “preferable” to a rankings-based system because the latter is determined by a panel of media members and is “subjective in nature.”
In fact, early critics of rankings-based compensation pointed out obvious flaws in the UFC’s top-15 lists and the potential pitfalls of giving the media power to determine a fighter’s standing. Lauzon, for example, was concerned about the money he stood to lose when the sponsorship program took effect in July. He said the promotion took “a hard stance” on experience over rankings during an informational meeting this past January.
“(UFC lightweight) Joe Proctor trains at my gym,” Lauzon, who has 17 UFC bouts under his belt, told MMAjunkie Radio. “He was on ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ had a couple of (UFC) fights. He’s technically unranked; I’m unranked. But I make a lot more in sponsors than he does.
“Looking at the new system, we’re going to be on the exact same page, which is pretty crappy.”
As previously reported, fighters are required to wear Reebok-branded apparel in conjunction with all official UFC events. They are given a “kit” of gear that can be tailored to their individual preferences that they must wear to their fights, press conferences, weigh-ins and open workouts. Additionally, in-cage sponsor banners are forbidden.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive, in perpetuity royalty, payments amounting to 20 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness.
The UFC considers the uniform a positive for fighters hit hard by a declining sponsorship market. Executives also say a branded apparel policy mirrors other major sports leagues. Several UFC fighters already have struck exclusive deals with Reebok, including light heavyweight champ Jon Jones, women’s bantamweight champ Ronda Rousey, ex-welterweight champ Johny Hendricks, featherweight contender Conor McGregor, and rising strawweight star Paige VanZant.
For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
Filed under: News, UFC
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