With more than half of his salary compromised, Jared Cannonier calls for fairer pay in the UFC

J. Cannonier in UFC victory. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram

Jared Cannonier achieved a great victory last Saturday (21), in the main fight of UFC Las Vegas 34, against Kelvin Gastellum. The middleweight (up to 83,9 kg) post-fight interview, however, was one of the most talked about topics after the event. Shortly after the victory, the fighter stated that he is financially broke and needs to fight again as soon as possible.

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During his appearance on the program The MMA Hour, by Canadian journalist Ariel Helwani, last Monday (23), Cannonier spoke more about the subject. The athlete revealed that most of the money received for the victory over Kelvin Gastellum was already compromised by expenses necessary to be an “elite fighter”.

“A lot of people don’t understand that, when we have these fights, we owe a lot of people later. After this victory, 60% of my money was gone. Between gym, manager, fees. Plus, I have bills, credit cards, I have children, I have a house in Alaska and a house here, I have car costs. The money goes away, it doesn’t last forever,” she explained.

Due to injuries suffered in the octagon, Cannonier was only able to fight twice in the last two years, which worsened the financial issue.

“At the moment the fight is our only income. I don't have any sponsors or anything like that. Fighting is my only focus. I'm not out there doing commercials or stuff like that. No one is asking me to be in the new Marvel movie. Not being able to be in action in the last 10 months made a big difference in my pocket. I'm happy to be back and to have two checks and the main fight bonus. And I’m happy that I didn’t get hurt and that I can fight again,” said the middleweight.

Finally, Cannonier stated that he considers himself an elite athlete and would like pay similar to athletes from other major North American sports organizations such as the NBA and NFL.

“I’m an elite level athlete. I would like to get paid like an elite level athlete. Like the ones who are in the NFL and the NBA, the ones who are playing baseball, football and everything else. They have sponsors, but they don't need them. All they need is that check from the organization. That's what we need here in the UFC. That’s all we would like”, he concluded.