Bellator 133 purses: 32k-1k
Reported purses at Bellator 133 ranged from $32,000 for Daniel Weichel to $1,000 for five fighters in the preliminary bouts. Alexander Shlemenko made $20,000 to win.
Bellator 133
Friday, Feb 13
Save Mart Center
Fresno, California
Alexander Shlemenko: $20,000
Melvin Manhoef: $15,000
Daniel Weichel: $32,000
Pat Curran: $20,000
Julia Budd: $24,000
Gabrielle Holloway: $6,000
Chris Honeycutt: $20,000
Clayton MacFarlane: $6,000
Emilio Chavez: $3,000
Art Arciniega: $2,000
Blake Watkins: $2,000
George Zuniga: $2,500
Paul Ruiz: $3,000
Nick Sperling: $1,000
Mason Fowler: $2,000
Marko Damiani: $1,000
Adam Piccolotti: $2,000
Andrew Ramm: $1,500
Jonathan Contrestano: $2,000
Ryan Tobar: $1,000
Nick Bustamante: $3,000
Luis Jauregui: $1,000
Cody Sons: $2,000
John Paul Elias: $1,000
The salaries reflect an unfortunate reality in the sport. Bellator is the second largest promotion in North American, and had ten fighters on the card making 1/1. The main event fighter, former league middleweight champion Alexander Shlemenko got $20,000 to win. In MMA, it gets worse from there, as you move into smaller promotions.
The above figures are the fighter payout information that promoters are required by state law to submit to the California athletic commission, including the winners’ bonuses.
The figures do not represent a full accounting of each fighter’s income.
Fighters bear significant costs including training expenses, a percentage to management, a percentage to the trainer, plus insurance, licenses, and taxes.
On the income side, sponsorship money can be a significant addition of the purse, although it is smaller than it was in the past, particularly for the less well known fighters.
And many fighters earn income from teaching, from appearances, and in many cases from regular employment in the non-fighting space.