A seismic shift is underway in the world of MMA. After years of courtroom warfare, Dana White and the UFC are gearing up to pay out a staggering $375 million to over 800 fighters, some of whom never thought this day would come. What was once a distant legal battle is now becoming a life-changing reality, with checks already in motion.
The case, spearheaded by fighters like Cung Le, Nate Quarry, and Jon Fitch, alleged that the promotion restricted competition and underpaid its athletes through coercive contracts and business tactics. The lawsuit covered fighters who competed between 2010 and 2017. For many of those fighters, the lawsuit had faded into the past—until now. And as Brendan Schaub recently revealed, the payout timeline is a lot sooner than anyone expected.
On episode no. 1066 of ‘The Fighter and The Kid’ (TFATK) podcast, former UFC heavyweight Schaub exclaimed, “Did I tell you this, daddy’s getting a check from the UFC? Did we talk about this, the antitrust lawsuit?”
The remark seemingly caught his co-host, Bryan Callen, off-guard as Schaub further shared, “The lawyer called me. He’s like you’re on the list, I was on it so long ago. I forgot about it. He goes, ’They settled. ’ I go, ‘Congrats, what do I get the money in like 10 years when I’m f—- old and gray? He goes, ‘No, July.’”
Callen then inquired about the details of the pay-out, to which Schaub responded by revealing that the $375 million payout will be split between “800 fighters”. Not a bad retirement bonus, considering many of those same athletes once walked away with checks smaller than the cost of a Vegas weekend.
But here is the twist. The UFC and Dana White aren’t fighting the payout. According to Schaub, his lawyer told him, “You could talk to Sean Shelby or Dana. They’re going to tell you to take the money because they have to pay it regardless. And if they don’t take it, then it just goes to the rest of you.”
So, does money alone fix the past? According to names like Dan Hardy and Ben Rothwell, things could have been better. In an interview with MMA Fighting last year, Hardy revealed that for UFC 111, he had secured just $5,400 to face the reigning welterweight king at the time, Georges St-Pierre! As such, he stated that while “a bit of progress” was made with the settlement, the fact that the UFC and Dana White are willing to pay the fighters indicates that, “…the UFC has got what they wanted in maintaining control with their contracts.”
For former UFC heavyweight Ben Rothwell, the numbers of the settlement were suspicious as well. Why? Rothwell explained in the MMA Fighting interview, “$300 million? Are you f—– kidding me? What a joke. I feel like there’s a backdoor deal.”
Even as the dust settles from the lawsuit and fighters like Brendan Schaub are set to receive their long-awaited dues, the UFC and Dana White’s fighter pay policies still remain questionable. While the promotion has reached staggering new heights in recent years, the athlete pay structure still falls far short of other major leagues like the NBA, NFL, and MLB!
Dana White and the UFC under scrutiny as shocking details of fighter pay brought to light
In a surprising statement on ‘The Fighter vs The Writer’, UFC Veteran Matt Brown recently stated, “If anybody is to blame for fighter pay, it’s the fighters — and I’m one of them, at least formerly.” His point? The UFC runs a tight ship. And pushing back publicly could sink a career. So, most stay quiet. But the numbers don’t lie.
According to a recent report shared on Instagram by MMA content creator, ‘Jordan Does UFC’, the promotion soared higher in 2024 when compared to its previous year’s earnings. He revealed TKO Group’s revenue for the UFC hit $1.4 billion in 2024—up from $1.29 billion the year before. Yet, fighters only got around 14.5% of that pot. That’s about $200 million in pay.
And it doesn’t stop there. “TKO is forecasting the UFC’s revenue to hit between $2.9 and $3 billion in 2025,” Jordan claimed.
The courtroom may have handed fighters a victory in the antitrust lawsuit, but the real war over fighter pay is far from over. While a $375 million check might silence some critics temporarily, the figures behind the UFC’s revenue tell a louder story—one that echoes with imbalance. Fighters are told to toe the line while the company’s revenue soars toward the $3 billion mark. And yet, the percentage allocated to the warriors in the cage barely scratches 15%.
So, as the UFC eyes record profits in 2025, fans and fighters alike are watching closely. Will Dana White and the TKO brass finally change the game—or just keep playing it better than anyone else? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
The post After $375M Settlement, Dana White and UFC Set to Change Lives of 800 Fighters as Veteran Confirms the Timeline appeared first on EssentiallySports.
