Ultimate Fighting Championship star Paige VanZant is one amongst the foremost well-liked professional fighters these days and has earned an estimated $474,500 in her career.
Now, as she negotiates a brand new UFC contract, the
25-year-old says she desires to
earn a salary that
matches not solely her
talent, however additionally the earnings of her
male peers. In a recent
interview on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on ESPN, the mixed martial artist said she presently earns extra money through sponsored
posts on Instagram than she does fighting.
“With endorsements, I make way more cash sitting at home posting photos on
Instagram than I do fighting,” says VanZant, who has 2.3 million Instagram
followers. “If I were to
prevent everything I do outside of fighting and simply fight, i might be at a loss financially
by an extended shot.”
VanZant has been out for most of the year after injuring her arm in February. “If I’m gonna keep
breaking my arm, if I’m gonna keep harming and
sacrificing for this sport, I feel that all fighters and all feminine fighters got to be recognized,” she said.
According to MMA declaration, recently retired Conor McGregor was the highest-paid
UFC fighter in 2018, having earned$3.03
million that year. His pay was
nearly triple the salary of Cris Cyborg, who was the highest-ranking woman on the top-earners list,
with a pay of $1.08
million.
VanZant, who has found fans beyond UFC over the years with appearances on “Dancing with
the Stars” and “Chopped,” says this time around she desires “a significant pay
raise.”
“I’ve simply been extraordinarily accomplished
outside of the UFC, as well as within the UFC,” she says.
“Five wins in the UFC,
four finishes, I’ve been main event twice, and that I suppose someone with those accolades ought to be paid more.”
Though the 25-year-old hopes to negotiate a pleasant raise, she is conscious of the necessity to keep up several sources of financial gain. She has endorsement
deals with multiple brands, together
with Reebok, Monster Energy Drinks, Metro PCS and Harley-Davidson.
“The issue with fighting is you never know how long you have in the career,” she told CNBC make it last year. “I may get hurt and never fight once more. It’s all concerning setting yourself up
for the successes outside of the cage moreover.”