Former UFC Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold voiced his displeasure over how UFC compensates athletes.
Currently, the UFC awards two $50k bonuses for performances of the night ({POTN) and two $50k bonuses for FOTN.
On rare occasions, the company decides to give out extra bonuses. This has been happening more as of late due to the fact UFC events are selling out gate repeatedly – therefor maintaining similar profit margins.
Still, Luke Rockhold believes that the amount the UFC gives out is absurd, given that bonuses have historically decreased in value.
“F*****g $50,000 bonuses going on for two decades. Like, what the f**l?” Rockhold told MMA Fighting. “The valuation of the company’s going up f*****g billions of dollars, and we’re still stuck on $50,000 bonus checks? What the f**k is this? People need to wake up.”
Given that the promotion previously offered incentives of $100k, Luke Rockhold thinks that each bonus should be in the neighborhood of $200k. He is aware that the value of the UFC has only risen; therefore, the bonuses should reflect that.
And Rockhold isn’t even accounting for inflation. $50,000 in 2010 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $67,935.76 today, an increase of $17,935.76 over 12 years. The dollar had an average inflation rate of 2.59% per year between 2010 and today, producing a cumulative price increase of 35.87%.
“Remember when they were doing $100,000 bonuses when Jake Shields fought Georges St-Pierre? Now we’re still stuck on $50,000 bonuses,” Rockhold said. “I mean, how many billions have we gone up in valuation since that fight — and we’re still tracking backward, and they’re still f****** us on pay? People need to shut the f**k up, ‘Oh, bonus $50,000!’ It’s becoming a thing. Let’s get $200,000 — $200G’s, motherf****r. That’s what you want to hear. The company needs to be reworked a little bit.”
Rockhold said that even if he thinks the incentives should be $200k, it won’t happen until more fighters speak out. However, he believes that the UFC athletes are too afraid to speak up. Thus the bonuses will likely stay at $50,000 for some time.
“It should gradually grow,” Rockhold said. “The company, everything should grow; we should grow together. That’s how a healthy business works. When you build an unhealthy business, it just takes enough time for the f*****g egg to crack and enough people to grow a f*****g sack. Too bad there’s not enough of us who have a sack.”
Rockhold’s displeasure with the UFC’s bonus structure seems ever-growing even as he prepares to return to the octagon to face Paulo Costa on UFC 278.