Don’t expect UFC flyweight talent Matt Schnell to join the push for an MMA fighter union to increase pay across the board for Octagon competitors.
The topic of how MMA fighters are paid — and specifically UFC talent — has been a major discourse in cage fighting circles for years. Since the UFC has raked in record revenue numbers in recent years while fighters as a whole have only seen moderate gains in their fight night payouts.
The subject was a major focus of MMA media outlets over the last month because of the ongoing contract dispute between UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and his employer. He wants a major increase on the $600,000 base pay he earned for his title defense at UFC 270, and he will not fight again for the promotion until something changes. Many fans and fighters are supportive of “The Predator’s” stance. However, Schnell (15-6) is not one of them. The nine-fight Octagon veteran claims the narrative around unfair pay for Ngannou is “dishonest,” and if he wants a pay increase he needs to fight out his deal — which includes a “champion’s clause” extension.
Matt Schnell calls Francis Ngannou’s unfair pay narrative ‘dishonest’
I also think it’s woefully dishonest that Francis Ngannou’s running around acting like he only made $600,000, Schnell told “>MMA Island [h /t MMAFighting]. I know for a fact he got pay-per-view points, he paid from Reebok, he got paid for this, got paid for that… He probably made — I’m not gonna say it, but way more than $600,000. So I mean, of course, I want to make more money, everybody wants to make more money. I’ll go out there and fight for it.
Some believe an MMA fighter union could bring about a great deal of change for new and established athletes. Increasing pay by collectively bargaining bigger revenue sharing percentages with the major organizations in the sport. However, Schnell is not interested in a union. He rather negotiates for himself solely and believes the pay level for new UFC talent is actually a fair amount compared to what they were making before.
Schnell makes his case against forming an MMA fighter union
I’m not one of these guys who is like, ‘Oh, we need to do this, we need to [unionize].’ I don’t want a fighters union,” he said. “I appreciate the opportunity to negotiate for myself. I’ll sit down at the table and negotiate for myself. I don’t want somebody negotiating for everybody else’s bullsh*t. I don’t care. I want people to make more money, absolutely. But people debuting? 12/12 [show and win bonus], that’s an awfully nice payday compared to what they’ve been making.
Schnell puts the onus on increasing fighter pay on fans, and even Jake Paul. The popular YouTuber turned boxing star has publicly campaigned for increased pay and has attacked UFC President Dana White for how he has paid his talent. “Danger” says if Paul wants to make a difference he can start his own promotion and lead by example. And if fans want better pay for competitors, stop illegally streaming UFC pay-per-views.
How about start a promotion and you pay them better? I think that’s a great idea, Schnell said. Start a promotion and you pay them better. And I’ll be the first guy if something doesn’t work out with the UFC [and] I’ll come make more money for ya too, Jake Paul. Cause I’ll go out there and I’ll fight and hold up my end of the bargain. But I don’t understand where these people are coming from.
All these people b*tching about fighter pay — and they’re stealing every single fight. Shut your f*cking mouth. Buy the pay-per-view, motherf*cker,” he continued. “You want to see us get paid more? Buy the pay-per-views, ya goofs. And I feel for them, it’s expensive. We’re living in an expensive time. Gas ain’t cheap, nothing’s cheap. We gotta keep on pressing forward. You want to complain about fighter pay? Go for it, but make sure you’re the one paying for the pay-per-views as well.
Schnell was set to compete tonight at UFC 271 in Houston, Tex. However, his opponent Alex Perez missed weight by two pounds and the Louisiana native declined to compete against Perez after his failed weight cut.
What are your thoughts on Schnell’s comments? Is he right, or being short-sighted?
