Conor McGregor can stock up on more alligator-skin dress shoes after his UFC 189 victory over Chad Mendes.
According to a release from the Nevada State Athletic Commission obtained by the MMA Report, both McGregor and Mendes made $500,000 for their roles in Saturday's main event.
For those into math and big numbers, that means they were each making $3 million per hour (the fight lasted almost exactly 10 minutes).
Here's the full breakdown:
- Conor McGregor: $500,000 (no win bonus)
- Chad Mendes: $500,000
- Robbie Lawler: $300,000 (includes $150,000 win bonus)
- Rory MacDonald: $59,000
- Jeremy Stephens: $72,000 (includes $40,000 win bonus)
- Dennis Bermudez: $34,000
- Gunnar Nelson: $58,000 (includes $29,000 win bonus)
- Brandon Thatch: $22,000
- Thomas Almeida: $24,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus)
- Brad Pickett: $30,000
- Matt Brown: $92,000 (includes $46,000 win bonus)
- Tim Means: $23,000
- Alex Garcia: $30,000 (includes $15,000 win bonus)
- Mike Swick: $48,000
- John Howard: $42,000 (includes $21,000 win bonus)
- Cathal Pendred: $10,000
- Cody Garbrandt: $20,000 (includes $10,000 win bonus)
- Henry Briones: $10,000
- Louis Smolka: $30,000 (includes $15,000 win bonus)
- Neil Seery: $15,000
- Cody Pfister: $20,000 (includes $10,000 win bonus)
- Yosdenis Cedeno: $13,000
Most notably, Jeremy Stephens was fined $8,000 for missing weight, but he made up for that misstep by netting a $40,000 win bonus with a ferocious flying-knee knockout in Round 3 of his main card tilt against Dennis Bermudez. The $8,000 he lost went to his opponent, a small consolation prize for getting flattened in highlight-reel fashion.
Mike Swick also out-earned his opponent, Alex Garcia, $48,000 to $30,000, despite losing the fight.
Swick had not fought since December of 2012 prior to his UFC 189 appearance, but he had performed under the Zuffa banner 17 times prior, three in the WEC and 14 inside the UFC Octagon. It may look strange at first glance to see a fighter make less than his opponent even with a win bonus, but Swick has earned his keep with a long, steady, problem-free career.
As a final housekeeping note, MMA writer Mike Chiappetta reported on Twitter that McGregor will also see an additional $3 to 4 million through PPV points.
Both Conor and Chad Mendes made $500,000 to show at #UFC189. McGregor had a piece of PPV, too & will likely make another $3-4 million.
— Mike Chiappetta MMA (@MikeChiappetta) July 13, 2015
While that sounds like a solid chunk of change on first read—and don't get me wrong, it is—it's still a small, small percentage of what the UFC itself stands to make from the event.
Banking a couple million dollars is never a bad thing, but if we're looking at percentages, the gate alone for UFC 189 was reported at $7.2 million. UFC President Dana White is also feeling froggy about the PPV buys, saying in a post-fight presser that the event could pull seven digits.
That's $50 million in PPV buys if everyone bought the standard definition format (and spoiler alert: there were surely a ton of high-definition buys). All things considered, McGregor can't be mad about his pull, but in a strange sense, it feels underwhelming when you really examine the payout.
