ESPN the Mag story tabs Lesnar as highest paid fighter at $5.3 million in 2010

Discussion in 'General MMA Discussion' started by Anthony, Apr 22, 2011.

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  1. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    In the major sports, stories about athletes' salaries generally draw derision and jealous reactions. In the case of mixed martial arts, fans probably have a more supportive stance for the fighters. The combatants aren't making a killing relative to athletes from the NFL, NBA and MLB yet they're putting their safety on the line.
    According to ESPN the Magazine, the highest paid MMA fighter in 2010 was Lesnar at ONLY $5.3 million. Boxer Manny Pacquiao led the way in the other major combat sport at $32 million.
    On the surface, that makes MMA look pathetic. Should MMA stars like Lesnar, Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva be making $15 million-plus a year? Maybe, but the argument from MMA promoters is that the gap between boxing's haves and have-nots is massive while MMA can boast of dozens of fighters making in excess of $500,000 per year.
    The StarPhoenix's Dave Deibert points out that Lesnar is actually a bigger draw than 99.9 percent of the fighters in the modern history of combat sports:
    Lesnar has recently become the biggest pay-per-view draw in the world. In 2010, he joined Mike Tyson as the only athletes to twice draw more than one million buys on pay-per-view in a single year — Tyson did it three times in 1996.
    ​
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  2. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    Pay up Dana. I've been saying it for the past few years.
     
    Joe King, Apr 22, 2011
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  3. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    And looking dumb the whole time.
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  4. mexican wedding shirt

    mexican wedding shirt The Greatest of Are Times

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    Please explain to me how NFL players get that much money. There's a whole team to pay, well actually a whole 2 teams to pay.

    How can one player get 15 mil in a year? Seems insane.
     
    mexican wedding shirt, Apr 22, 2011
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  5. steve_dave

    steve_dave Hard As Fuck

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    TV money baby. The NFL generates an obnoxious amount on money.
     
    steve_dave, Apr 22, 2011
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  6. steve_dave

    steve_dave Hard As Fuck

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    Don't worry. Eventually a top fighter will tell him to fuck himself and go indy.
     
    steve_dave, Apr 22, 2011
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  7. steve_dave

    steve_dave Hard As Fuck

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    None of that in here, man.
     
    steve_dave, Apr 22, 2011
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  8. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    Obviously you didn't read what you just posted.:Lok:
     
    Joe King, Apr 22, 2011
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  9. mexican wedding shirt

    mexican wedding shirt The Greatest of Are Times

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    :lol:
     
    mexican wedding shirt, Apr 22, 2011
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  10. mexican wedding shirt

    mexican wedding shirt The Greatest of Are Times

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    Where does quite that obnoxious amount come from? Mainly advertising and sponsorship?
     
    mexican wedding shirt, Apr 22, 2011
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  11. steve_dave

    steve_dave Hard As Fuck

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    Yeah, you'd have to look at the numbers, but those deals are massive. They generate billions every year if I'm not mistaken.
     
    steve_dave, Apr 22, 2011
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  12. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    They have their own network that you have to pay to subscribe to as well.
     
    Joe King, Apr 22, 2011
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  13. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    Obviously you didnt.
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  14. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    There is zero comparison between NFL money and UFC money. The NFL is on a whole different level.

    MMA will get there some day, it's still a new sport compared to boxing or any major sport like the NFL, NBA, MLB.
     
    *Z*, Apr 22, 2011
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  15. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    No, I did. I just expected you to not to believe the BS in bold, given that dozens of boxers make excess of $500,000 per year.

     
    Joe King, Apr 22, 2011
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  16. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    Boxing's pay scale is VERY top heavy. Once you get past the "stars" there really isn't a whole lot of guys making a killing.
     
    *Z*, Apr 22, 2011
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  17. steve_dave

    steve_dave Hard As Fuck

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    :lol: Not quite.
     
    steve_dave, Apr 22, 2011
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  18. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    Right, but boxing isn't a centralized "league" either. The UFC has an advantage there of controlling literally 100s of fighters.

    Boxing events pay out a higher percentage of revenue than the UFC does, while having higher costs per event than the UFC.
     
    Joe King, Apr 22, 2011
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  19. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    Not sure how anyone would know the cost to stage an event. How do you know this? MMA Orgs and boxing promoters are basically the same thing. How many fighters does Top Rank or GBP have?
     
    *Z*, Apr 22, 2011
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  20. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    MMA is an infant by comparison. Unless anyone can predict the future, non of us knows what the pay will be like in another decade.
     
    *Z*, Apr 22, 2011
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  21. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    Right so if they pay everyone 15k a fight the UFC will be booming huh?
    There is a reason why UFC is still #1 and growing all the time. Becuase they dont overpay their fighters. UFC pays their fighters that are low in cards the same if not more than boxing.
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  22. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    Its funny how people are upset the stars dont make as much as Pac or Floyd, but completely ignore that the lower card guys get paid more than boxing.
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  23. steve_dave

    steve_dave Hard As Fuck

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    Absolutely. Still, it won't ever be as big as the NFL.
     
    steve_dave, Apr 22, 2011
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  24. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    If you can't see that boxing and UFC have nearly identical costs in putting on events, then I can't help you.

    If you can explain why the costs would be different, I'm listening.
     
    Joe King, Apr 22, 2011
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  25. steve_dave

    steve_dave Hard As Fuck

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    I'm not upset. I don't care. But it won't last. I go back to the history of every major sport in America as evidence. Eventually, the fighters will demand a bigger piece of the pie.
     
    steve_dave, Apr 22, 2011
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  26. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    Then why doesnt boxing promoters pay their fighters more?
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  27. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    I didnt mean you.
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  28. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

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    Nothing will ever be as big as the NFL.
     
    Anthony, Apr 22, 2011
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  29. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

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    They pay them more than UFC fighters.
     
    Joe King, Apr 22, 2011
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  30. mexican wedding shirt

    mexican wedding shirt The Greatest of Are Times

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    Actually from what I've seen, borderline world class fighters get more in boxing than in MMA.

    The guys that are getting 15 to 30 grand in MMA are getting 50 to 100 grand in boxing.
     
    mexican wedding shirt, Apr 22, 2011
    #30
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