Dana White clarifies revolution in boxing pay structure after rumored payouts
Dana White discusses UFC Boxing League's $750,000 champion payouts, instead of the millions now prevailing across the 4-belt era.
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Dana White discusses UFC boxing league payouts compared to the current millions (Source: X)
Dana White’s upcoming boxing league with the Saudi GEA boxing chief Turki Alalshikh is all the rage right now. But White’s league was a little thin on concrete details, up until late. The new pay structure had a lot of commonality with the UFC parent company TKO’s original MMA venture. While there have always been prevailing thoughts of UFC underpaying and boxing overpaying, White divulged details on what this would mean.
A report from Boxing Scene detailed a $5,000 signing bonus/$20,000 for 10-round unranked bouts from the boxing league. Additionally, it’s $50,000 (Rank $5-10), $125,000 (3-4), and above. It would go all the way up to $750,000 for defending champion status. Dana White’s venture also has talks of “guaranteed PPV purse pay and/or a net-profit participation”. In a recent media sitdown with TNT Sports’ Adam Catterall, White talked more about it:
I think that, uh, the general public will know more of the of the guys, um, …And not just a handful of the top guys. And you’ll see money spread out throughout the entire business again not just going to a couple handful of guys, um, just like the UFC, you know — there, there are guys that would be considered journeymen in boxing. That have made millions of dollars in, in …UFC. I think we’ll see a lot more of that in boxing.
Dana White to TNT Sports’ Adam Catterall
The numbers caught attention as it is good, but not boxing good. The high payday also is a little shabby for top-10 ranked contenders in the TKO league. This also throws into a loop the system of paying people based on their company’s own rankings, which is exactly what the ‘Muhammad Ali Act‘ was to stop. Even recently, Dana White faced harsh criticism for limiting then-lineal UFC HW Francis Ngannou to a murky sunset clause of $600,000 instead of millions.
The TKO Group Holdings boxing league payday looks good on paper and structure like UFC does. But there are still a lot of gaps. White stated that the payday looks similarly structured but will be disbursed throughout the whole act and not just top names with blimps. This brings the question: Does UFC head/MMA supremo White and his influence and experiences benefit this new boxing league?
Dana White to have a new boxing league from ground up, or have elements from his UFC?
UFC’s Dana White and his boxing league are a success of sorts, one way or the other. But the format and finer details are still in the wind. Big queries such as how many events the “league” will operate after September remain unanswered. His unwillingness to cross-promote with major boxing sanctions is also a big red flag.
It all depends on the type of exclusive broadcast rights deal UFC® and parent company TKO Group Holdings (NYSE: TKO) can bag. White gave up good tidbits about it and his view of the current TV landscape in a recent interview. During a sitdown with former ESPN boxing journo Dan Rafael, he said:
What I do is I come in and build things that people think can’t be done, …I take niche sports and blow them up and turn them into monsters. That’s what I do – That’s my passion. If you look at what I did with UFC, why the f—k would I get involved in PowerSlap? Because I believe in it. I think it can be big and nobody else does. I mean, that’s basically what I do…Now I also believe that the sport of boxing is absolutely broken and has to be fixed. It has to be rebuilt from the ground up.
Dana White during The Pat McAfee Show for @espn
The telecast model and its success remain a big if. White and his UFC fan following are a rare bunch that still prescribe to pay-per-view models. With TKO flying high with its Netflix deal and viewership, it’s also prosperous. Now, with their more global reach, and Dana White and his PPV windfall to back it up, they are selling him as this Midas of combat sports, one that can surely reshape boxing into a league of its own.
The boxing payday is another side. A $10,000 / $10,000 Contender Series signee fee ($2,000+ bump per win) is the UFC norm. $12,000 for new signees ($2,000 bump per win) goes up to $21,000 – $23,000 / $21,000 – $23,000 for Tier 2 contracts, $55,000 / $55,000 until a deadset $50k limit. Now, the boxing payday is looking heavily reliant on the same pattern. Hardly a ground-up, time will tell if the boxing venture will stand its ground well or not.
Related: Best boxing fights of 2023: 10 times fans were SHOCKED with the action in the ring
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