UFC 184: Champion Ronda Rousey On Tap To Make $1 Million-Plus Against Cat Zingano
One of the most prolific fighters in mixed martial arts today, Ronda Rousey, will face off against the UFC’s undefeated bantamweight and No. 1 contender in Cat Zingano at UFC 184. The champion is arguably MMA’s most talked about personality and is undeniably a huge draw for the UFC. Not only is she undefeated, but Rousey has beaten every one of her opponents with ease. The 28-year-old is an Olympic medalist and largely responsible for the advent of women’s MMA in the UFC.
In that, according to Bloody Elbow, the California native is slated to make more than $1 million in her bout against Zingano on Saturday night at the Los Angeles Staples Center. Los Angeles Times journalist Lance Pugmire stated (via Twitter) that through pay-per-view points, UFC 184 could mark one of the largest pay days of Rousey’s career.
Told by @ufc official that @RondaRousey pay per view back end cut will allow her to surpass 1 million in earnings for this fight.
— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) February 27, 2015
Given that, many were surprised at that the challenger’s guaranteed pay of $100,000 (show)/$100,000 (win) as opposed to that of Rousey ($65,000/$65,000).
California commission tells me @RondaRousey guaranteed purse is 65,000 dollars and 65,000 more with a win.
— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) February 27, 2015
And @CatZingano gets 100,000 guarantee plus 100,000 for a win.
— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) February 27, 2015
However, Bloody Elbow reported that the champion could expect to make at least $500,000 if she generated pay-per-view buys of 300,000 or more.
“Rousey’s contract is reported to include PPV points that are paid on a tiered basis… she can expect to make around half a million dollars if the show sells 300,000 or more PPVs.”
Irrespective of her base pay, Rousey will win out tremendously in the end with her pay-per-view points and sponsorship deal with Reebok.
For Zingano, UFC 184 marks the biggest payday of her career thus far. Against Amanda Nunes at UFC 178, she made just $9,000/$9,000. Even if she loses at UFC 184, Zingano will still earn more than 10 times her base purse from her last fight.
A win by Zingano against the self-proclaimed “greatest fighter of all time” would most likely lead to even larger pay outs and represents a “huge deal” for the 32-year-old who has “a lot of respect for her (Rousey) and everything she’s done.”
“I’m grateful for everything [Rousey’s] done, the way she’s out there. She’s played it right, gotten the attention, gotten the hype.”
[Featured Image by Jason Merritt/Getty Images]
