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As part of a class-action lawsuit filed against UFC by more than 1,200 MMA fighters, the earnings of some of UFC's top fighters from 2011 to 2016 have been disclosed in newly filed documents.
According to Anton Tabuena of BloodyElbow.com, the names of the fighters were not attached to the payouts, but business expert John Nash used other information provided to determine how much several fighters, including Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey, were paid during that time period.
Per the findings, McGregor earned nearly $20 million for nine fights from 2011 to 2016, while Rousey made about $13 million for seven fights during the same timeframe.
According to Mike Scarcella of Reuters, the MMA fighters serving as the plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit are suing for $1.6 billion in damages.
The fighters, who competed in UFC from December 2010 to June 2017, are alleging that UFC "abused its power to suppress wages in violation of U.S. antitrust law."
While UFC attempted to get the lawsuit thrown out, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the motion Wednesday, paving the way for a trial to potentially begin in April.
From 2011 to 2016, McGregor and Rousey were perhaps UFC's two biggest and most marketable stars.
McGregor's $20 million in earnings stem from several high-profile fights, including Dustin Poirier, José Aldo and two bouts against Nate Diaz. His only loss during that span was a defeat at the hands of Diaz during their first meeting.
As for Rousey, who helped bring women's MMA fighting into the mainstream and was the inaugural UFC women's bantamweight champion, she won her first six UFC fights in dominant fashion before losing to Holly Holm at UFC 193 in 2015.
McGregor has not fought since 2021 due to injury, but he is working toward a return and remains one of the most successful UFC fighters of all time.
The Irishman owns a career record of 22-6, and he has held both the UFC featherweight and lightweight titles.
Rousey's shocking loss to Holm was the beginning of the end of her MMA career, as she fell to Amanda Nunes in her next fight and then made the move to professional wrestling by signing with WWE.
Like she was in MMA, Rousey was a trailblazer in pro wrestling, as she competed in the first women's match to ever headline a WrestleMania at WrestleMania 35.
On the subject of pro wrestling, the filing also revealed that former WWE and AEW star CM Punk was paid just over $1 million for his debut fight against Mickey Gall at UFC 203 in 2016.
Punk fought one other time, losing to Mike Jackson by unanimous decision in 2018, although it was changed to a no-contest after Jackson tested positive for marijuana.
While Punk now does only commentary for MMA fights, he returned to pro wrestling with AEW in 2021 after over seven years away, although his contract was terminated in September.
