The world of mixed martial arts has seen an unprecedented rise in popularity over the past 2 decades. Before that, the only real combat sports available were boxing, karate and judo. However, while the sport has grown immensely, the pay fighters get for it has not. In fact, many aspiring fighters crash out of training camps because they cannot afford to continue training with their side jobs.
The MMA world has very few McGregor’s and even a GOAT like Jon Jones has complained about fighter pay.
A Global MMA Fighter’s Union
Talks about UFC getting a fighter’s union have existed for a long time. There have been some attempts made for the same via the Mixed Martial Arts Athletes Association and the Professional Fighters Association. Both of these were begun in 2016 and have since then been either dissolved or become inactive in the fighting arena.
Meanwhile, the UFC had its biggest year ever in 2021 and is looking to go even bigger next year. However, fighter’s pay has remained a measly 15% of total revenues as compared to 50% in other sports like MLB, MLS and others.
In theory, a union is a great idea. Most major sports have one such union representing players and ensuring they get a range of benefits including better pay, injury insurance, retirement plans and many other benefits. However, as we said earlier, the two previous attempts to make a union involving UFC fighters failed.
In particular, MMAAA had backing from some of the most prominent names in MMA including George St-Pierre, Tim Kennedy, Cain Velasquez, TJ Dillashaw and Donald Cerrone. However, it failed to make any impact on the sport.
Does Jake Paul Have a Chance of Making a Change?
While the UFC did not integrate anything from MMAAA or the PFA despite considerable backing, the idea of a union still remains strong among pro fighters. Jake Paul has been on this topic for a long time now. In fact, he has spoken to active UFC fighters like Francis Ngannou who appeared with Paul on an episode of The Shop. Here’s a statement he made on the show:
“This is the most dangerous sport in the world and UFC makes billions of dollars a year and they’re only paying the fighters 15 percent of that,” Paul said. “Ari Emanuel, the CEO of Endeavor, his salary was more than the entire UFC roster. So, as far as them risking their lives for $10,000 there’s no long-term healthcare. So, for me I saw it as a problem, and I’m one of the people who can use their platform to speak up about it.”
He further said that most UFC fighters keep their discontent about their pay to their selves. He also gave an example of the pay comparisons between boxing heavyweights and MMA heavyweights.
“In boxing, the Heavyweight champion of the world makes $32 million to fight,” Paul said. “This is public information, [Francis] is making $700,000 to fight. So that’s where the discrepancy is. Can nobody see that that is f*cked up!”
Ngannou Says Yes But No
At this point, Francis Ngannou, who is UFC’s heavyweight champion came in to mention the risks involved in fighting and the unfair compensation for it. However, he did not agree that fighters can come together to form a union.
Nevertheless, Paul insists that if the top billers in the UFC came together, they can force the company to address their demands fairly. He also brought up the idea of asking top boxers like Canelo Alvarez and Floyd Mayweather to lend their support to the union. He even said he would pitch in from his own earnings.
Is this Going to Work?
While all of this sounds like a great idea, the fact remains that two unionization attempts with strong backing have failed in the past. So, the idea that Jake Paul can bring enough active fighters and legacy names like Anderson Silva together to make the UFC pay fighters better is a bit of a stretch.
Still, it’s a bold move and MMA does require better fighter representation for the betterment of the sport. So, if it happens, it will change the world of MMA forever. However, as it stands, it has a low chance of success even with top names in MMA like Anderson Silva behind it.
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