The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) today released the official fighter purses for those who competed at UFC 98: “Evans vs. Machida” this past Saturday night (May 23) from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Two former champions — Rashad Evans and Matt Hughes — were the big winners of the night, taking home an event-leading $200,000 apiece. However, both fighters experienced very different results inside the Octagon — Hughes was rewarded for his grudge match win over Matt Serra, while “Sugar” went home a little richer but without his 205-pound crown.
New UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida pocketed a cool $140,00 in base salary for his electrifying performance, which also earned him an extra $60,000 for “Knockout of the Night.”
Here is the complete list of UFC 98 payouts:
Lyoto Machida — $140,000 ($70,000 to show, $70,000 to win)
Rashad Evans — $200,000
Machida defeated Evans via technical knockout (strikes) in round two
Matt Hughes — $200,000 ($100,000 to show, $100,000 to win)
Matt Serra — $75,000
Hughes defeated Serra via unanimous decision
Drew McFedries — $34,000 ($17,000 to show, $17,000 to win)
Xavier Foupas-Pokam — $6,000
McFedries defeated Foupas-Pokam via technical knockout (strikes) in round one
Chael Sonnen — $50,000 ($25,000 to show, $25,000 to win)
Dan Miller — $15,000
Sonnen defeated Miller via unanimous decision
Frank Edgar — $40,000 ($20,000 to show, $20,000 to win)
Sean Sherk — $40,000
Edgar defeated Sherk via unanimous decision
Brock Larson — $42,000 ($21,000 to show, $21,000 to win)
Mike Pyle — $15,000
Larson defeated Pyle via submission (arm triangle choke) in round one
Tim Hague — $10,000 ($5,000 to show, $5,000 to win)
Pat Barry — $7,000
Hague defeated Barry via submission (guillotine choke) in round one
Kyle Bradley — $8,000 ($4,000 to show, $4,000 to win)
Phillipe Nover — $10,000
Bradley defeated Nover via technical knockout (strikes) in round one
Krzysztof Soszynski — $16,000 ($8,000 to show, $8,000 to win)
Andre Gusmao — $5,000
Soszynski defeated Gusmao via technical knockout (strikes) in round one
Yoshiyuki Yoshida — $16,000 ($8,000 to show, $8,000 to win)
Brandon Wolff — $3,000
Yoshida defeated Wolff via submission (guillotine choke) in round one
George Roop — $16,000 ($8,000 to show, $8,000 to win)
Dave Kaplan — $8,000
Roop defeated Kaplan via split decision
Keep in mind the salaries listed above do not include fight bonuses, sponsorships, percentages and other unofficial payments. It also does not include deductions for expenses such as insurance, taxes, etc.
For example, the UFC often hands out extra cash for “Fight of the Night,” “Knockout of the Night” and “Submission of the Night.” To check out these figures for UFC 98 go here.
The total base fighter payroll for the blockbuster pay-per-view (PPV) event, which attracted an unofficial crowd of nearly 13,000 attendees and a solid gate of $3.4 million, was $957,000.
For complete results and coverage of “Evans vs. Machida” click here and here.
69 Comments »
The Nover loss is a bit surprising. Did he get caught or was he outclassed?
caught and a BS stoppage from what i read right here on mania.. i think they said the ref told him sorry about the stoppage but bradley is a really big 155 so i can see him having a lot of power
The stopage was okay. Nover was limp for about a half second. If Eves had jumped in later he might have been okay, but he was limp and getting pounded on.
still havent seen that fight. Did Nover look any good prior ot the stoppage? I think its safe to assume that he is not the next anderson silva! lol
nover had sum nice kicks/knees and looked quick with nice movement on the feet but the fight only lasted a while but Bradley’s power was evident when it was just a tussle that led to Nover getting knocked down!
ref saw Nover go limp after 1 big punch and decided to go in to stop it but Nover ony went limp for a split second and then the ref realised this and kind of hesitated on what to do but then just stopped it.
So the ref was right to run in when he saw nover go limp but he shouldnt have hesitated…just a pity he didnt keep watching as he jumped in to stop the fight as he may have seen nover recover and the fight would have been continued.
no nover was not out at all, he got clipped and wobbled for a second. I dont see how levigne went from not stopping pete sell from getting murdered to this. But i do understand that being a ref is not easy and joe silva should rematch these two right away
you would think nover would get paid more, and rashad would too hell his TUF contract was 6 figures.. i understand machida getting such a low pay because of the excitement factor but rashad knocked chuck out brutally and knocked forrest out maybe some more pay shoulda went his way..
hughes is overpaid
To add to that:
It just shows the clear cut bias DW shows for certain fighters.
Hughes getting paid as much as Shad? Shad was the champ!
Loyalty = $$$
Rashad’s contract is 200 to show 200 to win.
that means he makes twice as much as hughes cuz hughes makes 100 to show 100 to win.
get your shit straight
Rashad would have earned an additional $175k had he won … just to be totally straight.
I read the article. Thats why I thought it was that figure.
jt-
Why so angry? Your boy won, right?
If anyone got hosed it was Machida, not Rashad. It took the $60,000 KO bonus + his win bonus just to equal what Rashad got for getting his ass kicked.
OJ,Hughes got the same of Rashad b/c he won his bonus and Shad didn’t.Otherwise it would have been 400000 for Sugar!
You guys have to remember who you are talking about, Matt Hughes was one of the biggest names in the UFC, Champion, Title defences, Hall of Famer, alll that said I hate the guy. I just think that who he is, is why he got/gets paid so much. Its not the fight itself, its who he is………IMO!!!
Thanks but I think mania posted the correct amount above.
yep but Hughes isn’t exactly a big draw… Hughes is pretty boring as a person and he doesn’t care about being a star or anything..
Alpha-
Post the Shad pics! I answered in the other thread!
Despite my dislike for Hughes, I have to agree with Spyder
The contracts aren’t negotiated for specific fights. Hughes was on the last fight of a contract he negotiated years ago. Sugar and Lyoto are in the middle of contracts. I’m sure they’ll see pay increases next time they negotiate a contract.
are you guys dumb?? “6 figure contract” not 6 figures per fight. the tuf contract are a few years and the win/show max out is 6 figures. look at kristov or novers win/show money!
It is a six figure contract! hello?? 100k is 6 figure, he got 200k for a loss. Don’t forget, pay doesn’t change when you’re lock in a contract, unless you negotiated some sort of ramped up pay clause every time you win.
6 figure CONTRACT! not six figures per fight. Shad’s tuf contract is done. If you want a better Idea, look at nate diaz’s pay or whoever won the last one! It’s NOT 6 FIGURES PER FIGHT…it’s for the 5 fight (example) contract. 5 into 100K is 40k a fight. 20k/20k win show!
LOL!Still improving your maths skills,i see!
lol, I noticed it and figured the morons on here wouldn’t pick up on it! I’m actully a numbers guy, but after playing poker all day, I messed up! you get the point though, it’s a contract, not per fight!
on the flip side, 200k is 6 figures!
Don’t worrie i got it bro!
don’t forget guys… i’m pretty sure that TUF “six figure” contract is 6 figures over 3 years….. and barely 6 figures at that… something like 35 a year over about 3 fights…. equaling 10 a fight… probably similar to the one nover got for being runner up
more money would come from winning and moving up. a la rashad, forrest, etc
Machida 140k Matt Hughes 200k come on Dana White pay the Champ more than that. Most expensive wrestling match in history. Matt Hughes didnt even strike Serra.
Machida also got 60K knock out of the night so he earned 200K plus whatever extra cash Dana gives out in the back that we are not made aware of. Remember one Dana blog where he tell everyone if you get a knock out or a submission there an extra 20k in it for you. So incentives do exist we are just not privy to all of them.
he hit him when he got him down, serra’s face had the marks after the fight to prove it. Why would hughes want to strike with a better striker?
Honestly, they looked like scratches from when his hands were smothering Serra face. I was thinking after the fight that his fingernails might have gotten to Serra a bit.
Yeah, they were way more scratches than anything else. I get the same marks from my gym when helping guys get ready for a fight. Worst win ever in Hughes career. Serra don’t need the money though.
So is it also the worst loss in Serra’s career. two guys make a fight. Matt Hughes may have humped serra like a dog all night, but Serra allowed Hughes to hump him all night. You guys are probably right about the scratches though. still, if hughes would have tried to stand with serra, he would have been knocked out. he had a game plan and executed it. serra, a bjj black belt, was a turtle on his back most of the fight. hughes size was probably the biggest factor in the fight, would love to see serra at 155, but he obviously has no intentions of doing so.
Nover was out for a brief second. He recovered quickly but it was too late Yves Lavigne had prematurely stopped the bout. Why do you think he was booed all night.
That makes since I was wondering when I was watching the fights why they was booing him. Thanks for shining some light on it paco.
Oh, I thought he was getting booed for that really late stop a couple of PPV’s ago. Poor Yves, he was good for letting it go, he let one go too long and now he’s gun shy.
McFedries deserves a raise for sure!
Rashad did get paid more. He got 200k to lose. If he woulda won it probly woulda been a 200k win bonus. Does anyone actually read the article or just the headline?
Wrong. See mania’s post above.
175K close enough. Rashad is one of the top guys in the UFC. Why? I don’t know, I don’t see him being much of a draw. I’m sure his pay will be lower next fight. I bet you get more if you hold the belt.
Rashad got paid 200,000 to not land a punch! THanks for the great fight “Suga”!!!!!! lol
According to fight metric he hit Machida with 4 strikes. He got 50K per strike!!! Not bad for a day’s work.
…and he got to sleep on the job!
hahahahahaha that is too funny. At least it was just a power nap at the end of his shift
Thats funny champ, maybe rashad will get sponsored by Sealy or Silent night.
Rashad makes more than Machida? LMAO!
Rashad went into the fight as the champ, that’s why.
exactly…the contracts are done up before the fight not after…
evans also only recently renegotiated his contract. when he won the belt, he got a new 8 fight contract.
there was obviously a big step up there – before his title fight, i think he was only on 70 grand or so.
still cant believe how little sherk is paid.
when he was lightweight champ, he was only on 50k to fight, 50k to win bonus.
50k for a champ is terrible – he needs a new agent for sure.
matt hughes is a weasel, but defenitely deserves his pay, dude has headlined one of the biggest UFC fights ever and obviously negotiated his contract when he was the champ.
i wonder how long Krzysztof Soszynski will be on 8k to show, 8k to win if he keeps stringing wins together.
Krzysztof Soszynski will probably see a step up in competition and in pay in his next fight. But I don’t think he can handle the upper echelon. He will probably lose and go back to 8k to show 8k to win.
exactly, the most surprising amount is the 40k that Sherk makes, that doesn’t even cover his roids!!! lmao!!!
the reason he makes that is because he has a contract incl. multiple fights, all of which pay him the same. When his current contract is expired he can renegotiate for more
Hughes got what he should of. Remember he tied Chucks record for most wins in the UFC. stand up was not part of his game plan which is why he came out south paw only wanting the takedown. Getting the W is worth more than making YOU happy
WRONG…the whole point is entertainment…without the fans where is the money coming from….sponsors?? not for long without fans in the stands
Hughes will never be champ again but fuckit throw em in there
your right more than likely he’ll never be champ again but there are plenty of top guys he can still beat. Theigo was WAY over weight when he fought Hughes and he knows GSP is on a different level. So his loses came from the top two fighters out there right now. He wants theigo again. I’d like to see it with theigo actually making weight this time, not 20 lbs over
Looks like a lot of fighters got taken care of if you ask me. Most of the numbers are obvious if you look at them, I understand why Machida made less than Rashad and it does make sense. I doubt Rashad will make as much in his next fight. I agree with Hughes making what he made after helping build the company like he did. I was also glad to see some of the other fighters taken care of. I think the pay structure is getting better in the UFC.
What u get paid for each fight is stated in your contract. When your contract expires you can renegoiate. Thats why we see gonzaga and vera who were recently on undercards make a 100k because it was in there contract before they lost and got downgraded to undercard for awhile. I think the ufc can increase your pay for a fight but cant decrease your pay. They also give ppv bonuses to fighters i believe. Like coutore got paid 500000 in ppv bonuses for fighting lesnar on top of the 200k he made.
UFC has some glue horses it needs to get rid of. Namely: Sherk, Hughes and Coleman
Sherk!?
Are you Fucking High right now!?
He’s lost to 2 CURRENT champions and 1 FORMER champion ALL OF WHICH are future UFC Hall of Famers!
NOW he loses to Edgar and hes done!?
Your delusional!
Hughes won’t be the Champ again but hell hes in PHENOMENAL shape and can still take out most of the upper eschelon of the WW division!
if sherk went back to his old ways he should be spared..but hughes and coleman are staight up old…i know, i know there is the couture thing that you can be old as f**k and still kick ass..
how about if amir loses he goes straight to the glue factory..
ABOUT NOVER
Nover got thrown down and was getting hit. went limp for half a second. In that half a second the ref appeared to have stepped in but then backed off. As the ref backed off NOver got back to his feat. Kyle bradley looked at the ref like what the hell i thought you stopped it. Then Lavine waived off the fight even though Nover had fully recovered at that point… and that was the end of it. He may have went limp but no joke he popped right back up….. was a bull shit call in my opinion and i was there live.
Is it my imagination, or has Lavine been in the middle of other convtroversial stoppages??
I see it, and it does seem like it was a bit early. However, it looks like that because Ives pulled Kyle off and allowed Nover to recover. Ives seems unsure about stopping fights. He needed to pull him off firmly, and it would have been a better stop without as much controversy. Anyways, Bradley won and would have still won if it would have gone on a second longer.
I think what people forget is the UFC puts you on the biggest stage in MMA. That allows you to get the biggest sponsors. A sponsor won’t pay you big money to put their name on your shorts or T-shirt if you’re fighting in some small hick show. Some of these guys make big money of sponsors because they fight for the UFC. Sometimes the smaller base pay is a trade off.
i think tha these uf guys are good in the house but once they hit the real stage they just look outclassed, people think there great but the majority of them are tommy speers esque
dont be surprise about the salary, it will change once their contract has been renew, machida will got a huge raise for sure!!
Funny to see Brandon Wolf get 3k. I didn’t know he’s 33 years old. He can take his strong bloodline back to the Hilo rock running tournaments after his loss. I did expect much more of a fight.