UFC 141 Fighter Salaries: Brock Tops List, but Calls It Quits After Loss to Overeem

Posted on January 3, 2012 by MMAWeekly.com Staff

Alistair Overeem

The Nevada State Athletic Commission on Friday released the UFC 141: Lesnar vs. Overeem fighter salaries.

The main event featured a heavyweight showdown between Brock Lesnar and Alistair Overeem to determine the No. 1 contender to current UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos. Overeem came out and crushed Lesnar in short order, earning the shot at dos Santos, and then Lesnar decided he’d had enough of the fight game and called it quits.

The following figures are based on the fighter salary information that promoters are required by law to submit to the state athletic commissions, including the winners’ bonuses.

Although mixed martial arts fighters do not have collective bargaining or a union, the fighters’ salaries are still public record, just as with every other major sport in the United States. Any undisclosed bonuses that a promoter also pays its fighters, but does not disclose to the athletic commissions (specifically, pay-per-view bonuses, fight of the night bonuses, etc.), are not included in the figures below.

UFC 141 FIGHTER SALARIES

Alistair Overeem: $385,714.28 (includes $121,428.57 win bonus)
def. Brock Lesnar: $400,000 (flat rate; no win bonus)

Nate Diaz: $74,000 (includes $37,000 win bonus)
def. Donald Cerrone: $30,000

Johny Hendricks: $52,000 (includes $26,000 win bonus)
def. Jon Fitch: $60,000

Alexander Gustafsson: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus)
def. Vladimir Matyushenko: $40,000

Jim Hettes: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Nam Phan: $8,000

Ross Pearson: $40,000 (includes $20,000 win bonus)
def. Junior Assuncao: $8,000

Danny Castillo: $38,000 (includes $19,000 win bonus)
def. Anthony Njokuani: $12,000

Dong Hyun Kim: $82,000 (includes $41,000 win bonus)
def. Sean Pierson: $8,000

UFC 156 Fight Salaries: Rashad Evans Tops Payroll in Defeat, Followed by Overeem and Aldo

Jacob Volkmann: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus)
def. Efrain Escudero: $10,000

Luis Ramos vs. Matt Riddle was cancelled

Diego Nunes: $24,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus)
def. Manny Gamburyan: $18,000

UFC 141 DISCLOSED FIGHTER PAYROLL: $1,369,714.28

(UPDATE on Jan. 3, 2012: Fitch’s salary initially included a typo that included a win bonus. As he lost, he of course did not receive a win bonus, which has been reflected in the article.)

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http://www.bloodyfists.net/forums/index.php SHORT_BUS

Overeem looked a little shocked at the post fight press conference when that “reporter” asked him about the court order freezing his pay. Said it was the first he’d heard about it. Wonder if the win bonus will be withheld as well.
elguapo

Why tell us what overeem earns right down to the last cent?
- http://www.bloodyfists.net/forums/index.php SHORT_BUS
  
  Because that’s what he got paid. LOL
  - elguapo
    
    Ha, yes fair point! I’m sure they could’ve just rounded it to the nearest dollar even. Or maybe they were having a poke at the authorities who have supposedly withheld his pay by declaring exactly what he earned?
DGfishingtime

You have Fitch as getting $60,000 with a $60,000 win bonus. He lost. So unless they gave him $60,000 for someone else winning, you have a typo.
- http://www.bloodyfists.net/forums/index.php SHORT_BUS
  
  He deserves an additional $60k for that performance. That was the best Fitch fight I’ve seen in years.
http://www.bloodyfists.net/forums/index.php SHORT_BUS

Guess the commission didn’t withhold any of Overeem’s money and he was paid his full salary. Wonder why the NSAC chose to ignore the court order.

Saw on another site the guess-timated total Overeem will make for the Lesnar fight. Factoring in his show money, win money, 1/3 of his signing bonus and PPV kickback, they had his total payday at over $2 million.
Here’s there guess work:

- Show money: $264,285
- Win money: $121,428
- 1/3 of his signing bonus: $333,000
- $2 for every PPV over 500k: $1,580,000
*(based on estimated 800k PPV’s sold)

- Total Pay for UFC 141: $2,298,713
fitefan

LOL@short_bus, that’s a damn funny statement about Fitch’s fight. too funny. ‘:-)

So how much of that money you reckon Golden Glory wants? How much of it do you reckon they truly deserve?
So glad they found a way to pay him. I still don’t understand “worried he will flee to Holland”
Holland isn’t that big. It’s not like it’s a different dimension he can vanish into, plus he has to come back to the US to fight again. And they are already in a suit with Overeem. This is just below the belt last minute tactics to tie up his capital so he can’t afford good litigation in the original lawsuit.

I’m just glad the author used the word ‘quit’ instead of ‘retire’
Darren2112

Kind of funny/ironic that 3 of 10 fighters that lost got paid more than the guy that beat them. Wierd…