Fight day is just around the corner! This also means that it'll be payday for the athletes that are putting it on the line this weekend. This Fight Night event is headlined by some of bantamweight's finest, Cory Sandhagen and Marlon ‘Chito' Vera. We look at the expected UFC fighter pay ahead of this clash.
Sandhagen, ranked number five in the division, will look to earn another shot at gold. To do so, he'll need to step on the hands of the prolific finisher, ‘Chito' Vera, who just knocked out Dominick Cruz in his last outing. This is quite a high-profile fight and either fighter has a strong case for a title shot after a good performance this weekend.
In addition to the headlining fighters, we've got some other big names scattered across the card. Holly Holm will step in the octagon for the first time since last May, Nate Landwehr will try to extend his winning streak to three, Maycee Barber will try to make a step closer to the title, and many more!
What Will the Prize Money Be for Vera vs Sandhagen?
Great question. Though we can't pinpoint the exact UFC fighter pay this weekend, we can make an educated guess. Let's take a look at previous payouts and that'll let us know what is to be expected.
We'll start with ‘The Sandman'. It's reported that Sandhagen made $150,000 to show and another $150,000 to win in his last bout against Song Yadong. Throw on another 11k for sponsorship money and Cory went back home with an extra $311,000 on his wallet. Not bad!
It would be safe to assume he'll be making the same thing this weekend, should he win. However, it is worth noting that this is Cory Sandhagen vs Marlon Vera, which has “post-fight” bonus written all over it. Perhaps there will be a bonus on the invoice. With his base pay and fight incentive pay, Sandhagen should walk away with at least $161,000.
His counterpart for this weekend, as mentioned earlier, last fought former champion, Dominick Cruz. Vera was able to stop the bantamweight legend with a vicious head kick. Vera was able to pocket $300,000, which includes his $150,000 win bonus. ‘Chito' will more than likely replicate this payout should he get his hand raised against Sandhagen.
Remaining Prize Money for UFC Fight Night: Vera vs Sandhagen
The former champion, Holly Holm, just signed a new six-fight deal with the UFC. She's not going anywhere for a bit. Let's look at her recent payouts and see what she'll probably be walking away with. I'd imagine that her new deal isn't too far off of what she was making, which was around $160,000 to show, $60,000 to win.
She's not making that champion money anymore, but she's making the money that her career and tenure have granted her.
Opposite of Holly Holm is Yana Kunitskaya. Her last fight was a loss against Irene Aldana, which snapped her two-fight winning streak. This loss paid her $44,000. In addition, she received $12,600 for Aldana missing weight and 6k for a fight week incentive pay. Should she beat Holm, it would be safe to assume she'll take another $44,000 to show and $44,000 to win.
Again, we can't give an exact number on the payouts, but here is what is expected for the main card.
- Cory Sandhagen – guaranteed $161,000
- Marlon Vera – guaranteed $161,000
- Holly Holm – guaranteed $171,000
- Yana Kunitskaya – guaranteed $55,000
- Nate Landwehr – guaranteed $120,000
- Austin Lingo – guaranteed $20,000
- Andrea Lee – guaranteed $42,000
- Maycee Barber – guaranteed $56,000
- Alex Perez – guaranteed $100,000
- Manel Kape – guaranteed $25,000
- Chidi Njokuani – guaranteed $40,500
- Albert Duraev – guaranteed $18,000
