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For a fighter who has yet to have his first fight inside the UFC Octagon, former Strikeforce middleweight contender Tim Kennedy has shown he is not afraid to voice his opinion about the UFC pay structure.
Kennedy, 33, is a war veteran and still remains active military. He will make his UFC debut this weekend against fellow Strikeforce vet Roger Gracie as part of the UFC 162 main card airing live on PPV from Las Vegas.
Kennedy made headlines recently when he said he would make more money as a trash collector than a UFC fighter. He later apologized for those statements on his Facebook page.
“I recently made comments regarding fighter pay,” Kennedy stated. “The intent of these statements was to highlight that professional fighters incur significant expense associated with their preparations to fight and that fighter compensation is still not on par with other major sports.”
“Unfortunately, I made statements that alluded to how the UFC in particular pays its athletes. This was particularly offensive as Zuffa has taken better care of me than any other organization, even giving me a bonus for being amusing on Twitter. My choice of words was poor, not properly informed and did not match my intent. Additionally, my comments were taken out of context.”
Kennedy added, “My comments were hurtful and inappropriate. I accept full responsibility for the statements and apologize to the UFC, Dana White, Lorenzo Fertitta and Joe Silva as well as anyone I might have offended with my comments. Fighting for the UFC is an honor and a privilege. I look forward to putting this situation behind me and focusing on my upcoming fight with Roger Gracie.”
UFC President Dana White responded to Kennedy’s statements about making more money as a trash collector than a UFC fighter in an interview posted Tuesday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“Then go be a (expletive) garbage man,” White said. “There’s the answer to that question.”
Former UFC fighters John Cholish and Jon Fitch have also made recent statements about the UFC’s payment structure, but they were on their way out — Cholish retiring (apparently due to lack of pay) and Fitch being released from his contract. However, Kennedy is the first UFC-signed fighter to say these things publicly even before he’s made his Octagon debut.
Guess who probably won’t be getting a fight night bonus on Saturday?
In fact, due to these recent complaints, White has stated the UFC is considering doing away with the bonuses altogether and distributing that money to the lower tier fighters’ base pay.
“Who you will not hear bitching are the guys that matter. The guys who make a difference,” White said. “Frankie Edgar is going to make a lot of money [at UFC 162 on Saturday]. Anderson Silva is going to make a lot of money this weekend. Chris Weidman is going to make a lot of money.”
“No disrespect, but who gives a s—- about Tim Kennedy? Is he selling out venues? Are people buying f—– tickets for Tim Kennedy? OK, there you go.”
Kennedy previously stated the UFC will be paying him about $55,000 to show and $70,000 to win on Saturday. If Kennedy were to win at least one of the three customary fight night bonuses the UFC hands out, it would push his pay to six-figures — but that’s not guaranteed money. And Kennedy is not a lower tier fighter.
The lowest paid fighter on the card Saturday night will earn approximately $8,000 to show and $8,000 to win (that is the approximate entry level going rate at present). If Kennedy has trouble making ends meet with training expenses and whatnot, imagine how hard it is for those guys.
If enough fighters and fans voice their opinions it will make a difference. The UFC has shown in the past they are willing to evolve and make changes if enough people want it — even if White lets a few F-bombs fly in the process.
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No changes should be made. You want “Anderson Silva money”? Then stop bitching & do everything you can to become the greatest fighter in the world (or in your division). What? The prelim & low tier guys should be making millions? Hell no. If you don’t have what it takes or are too lazy to put in the work to make it to the top so you can make “Anderson Silva money”, then you’re in the wrong business. Plain & simple. If they take away the fight bonuses (FON, SON, KON), just because the low tier guys who will never make it to the top are bitching – then that is BULLSHIT. Plain & simple.
As with any sports organization the UFC creates a platform to showcase an athletes talents. NFL money wasn’t ‘NFL’ money for the first 60+ years of the league. Players from the Brooklyn Dodgers used to live and work day jobs in Brooklyn only playing MLB as part time income. No one is entitled to million dollar pay days. Dana’s point was that some fighters are able to use the Platform of the UFC to generate interest and put butts in seats. If no one cares the money just isn’t there.
Ask guys like Dan Severn who used to fly to Iran to fight on dirt floors years before the UFC how much he got paid? He probably had to pay for his ticket. Until a successful platform exists, most athletes toil for the love of the sport. It’s more of a rarity that a platform exists for them to showcase their talents and allows them to just ‘show up’ and earn millions.
I get what Kennedy is saying. You have a UPS driver grossing $90,000 a year and getting top notch medical benefits for almost free + 4-5 weeks vacation & a nice pension. He goes to a UFC event and is excited to get an autograph & meet someone like Diego Sanchez, Chris Leben, or Tim Kennedy who may only fight two times a year IF they stay healthy (remember….injuries happen a lot). The driver may be shocked to find out that after training expenses & medical co-pays he actually makes MORE than his “superstar” UFC athlete.
Don’t forget that until recently fighters had to pay their own medical insurance! It was even less lucrative to fight then.
I’d rather watch paint dry than watch Kennedy. Without any doubt Kennedy is one of the top 3 most boring fighters in all MMA. Sheilds, Fitch, Kennedy have done more damage to the sport than any other fighters. Anyone who watches any of those 3 fight fro first time more than likely with never watch MMA again
One thing is for sure NOONE would ever pay to watch Kennedy fight. Kennedy will never in a million years earn a bonus and once he fights a top 10 fighter and gets his a’s handed to him he will be released. UFC didn’t sign Kennedy and only inherited his insanely OVER PAID contract. UFC wouldn’t have signed Kennedy in the forst place for any amount of money. Kennedy isn’t worth the $8k minimum . Why would a company like UFC want a fighter that has no fan base and doesn’t sell tickets. Why do you think they got rid of Fitch. Kennedy will be released after his first loss
Dana hit the nail on the head when he said “who gives a sh’it about Tim Kennedy” nuff said
AS soon as Kennedy’s old strikeforce Contract is up UFC will dump his boring a’s
That had to be the biggest downside to buying out Strikeforce was inheriting all those insanely over paid contracts like Kennedy