The fight game is much more than just throwing punches. Behind every knockout and submission victory lies a much uglier battle: the one over paychecks. For decades, fighters have stepped into cages and rings, risking their health and futures, while promoters and organizations count the real money from the sidelines. This isn’t exactly breaking news, but the conversation about fighter pay has reached a boiling point lately, especially when comparing what boxers earn vs what MMA fighters take home. And now, Terence Crawford has also weighed in on this.
The stark reality is pretty simple to understand. In Boxing, individual fighters can negotiate their own deals and secure massive paydays if they have the right combination of skill, star power, and shrewd management. Meanwhile, the UFC runs more like a traditional sports league, controlling most aspects of fighter compensation through standardized contracts and a system that keeps the vast majority of revenue flowing upward to the company rather than down to the athletes doing the actual fighting.
When Terence Crawford appeared on the Pound4Pound Show with Henry Cejudo and Kamaru Usman, he didn’t mince words about the financial reality facing fighters in both sports. The undefeated welterweight, who is getting ready to take on Canelo Alvarez, made it crystal clear that boxers simply earn more money than MMA fighters, and there’s really no comparison between the two. Crawford pointed out that even fighters on boxing undercards typically make more than many UFC competitors, which is a pretty damning indictment of how the mixed martial arts world handles fighter compensation.
“Boxers get paid more than MMA fighters, it’s no comparison… As a whole (even the undercard fighters).”
The numbers back up everything Crawford said. When he fought Errol Spence Jr. in one of boxing’s biggest fights, Crawford reportedly earned at least $25 million for that single night’s work. Compare that to Conor McGregor at UFC 229, where the lightweight guaranteed purse was $3 million. Sure, McGregor might have made more with bonuses and pay-per-view points, but the base difference is staggering.
This whole debate highlights a fundamental problem that isn’t going away anytime soon. Boxing’s individual contractor model allows top fighters to earn life changing money, while the UFC’s employee style system keeps most fighters struggling financially despite generating massive revenue for the company. Until something changes structurally in how MMA handles fighter pay, these conversations will keep happening, and the numbers will keep favoring the boxers every single time.
(Image Credit: Sarah Stier – Imagn Images)
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