CONOR McGREGOR’S first five UFC pay-per-view payouts have been sensationally revealed in court.
The UFC are at the centre of a class action suit – first filed in 2014 – with potentially over a thousand fighters seeking damages of over £1 BILLION.
Plaintiffs claim the UFC abused its market power to acquire or block rival promoters and used exclusive contracts in alleged unfair business practices.
The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals this week denied the UFC’s appeal to revoke class action status, setting up a trial next year.
As a result, recently unsealed court documents revealed some of the biggest payouts for fights held between 2010-2017.
And McGregor’s first five purses from PPVs he headlined were laid bare.
His first came in 2015 in an interim featherweight title bout against Chad Mendes, following a late pullout from champion Jose Aldo.
McGregor was paid £2.1m having been guaranteed a base purse of £400,000.
Having knocked out Mendes in round two, it set up a super-fight against Aldo that year which the Irishman famously won in 13 seconds.
He made £3.7m for it after another base purse of £400,000.
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McGregor would go onto have a pair of fights against Nate Diaz in 2016, losing the first but winning the rematch.
His base purse was £820,000 for the original and a record £2.4m for the sequel.
But, in total McGregor took home £9.1m for his rivalry with Diaz.
It was revealed UFC 196 – where Diaz submitted McGregor – made a total of £50m.
That means with McGregor’s purse of £4.5m, he received just nine per cent of the event’s revenue.
McGregor’s largest payout before 2017 was the £5.5m he made for beating Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205, having been guaranteed £2.2m.
Getty – ContributorMcGregor knocked out Chad Mendes in two rounds[/caption]
AP:Associated PressMcGregor knocked out Jose Aldo in 13 seconds[/caption]
Getty – ContributorNate Diaz submitted McGregor in 2016[/caption]
Getty – ContributorMcGregor beat Diaz on points in their rematch[/caption]
At the time, he became the first UFC champ to hold two belts at the same time.
The New York event raked in a total of £54m, meaning McGregor only received a ten per cent share of the final revenue.
McGregor’s total of £20.4m made between 2015-2017 as the UFC’s highest-earner was mocked by YouTuber-turned boxer Jake Paul.
Paul, 26, posted but has since deleted: “This is f*****g hilarious and sad at the same time.”
The American has publicly campaigned against UFC president Dana White to increase the pay and health care for his fighters.
Paul in 2021 made £30m for three boxing bouts and claimed he earned the same figure in just one night against Tommy Fury in February.
From 2018 onwards, McGregor, 35, has headlined a further four UFC PPVs and in 2017 crossed over to boxing to fight Floyd Mayweather.
He is said to have earned around £80m for the bout but due to his UFC contract, he was obliged to share the earnings with the promotion.
The UFC’s class action suit is set for trial next April. They deny any wrongdoing.
GettyMcGregor knocked out Eddie Alvarez[/caption]
USA Today SportsFloyd Mayweather beat Conor McGregor in 2017[/caption]
UFC president Dana White with McGregor in 2021Getty Creator – [#item_custom_dc:creator]
