Jake Paul has never shied away from criticizing the pay of UFC fighters.
Paul spoke by phone with UFC lightweight champion Ilya Topriya (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC). Topriya asked Paul what he meant when he said UFC CEO Dana White was his father, and the YouTube star turned professional boxer jumped at the opportunity to belittle him.
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“You can’t do anything. You might be making $2 million a game and he’s only paying Connor Benn $15 million,” Paul told Topuria on Adin Rose’s Kick Live. “Why aren’t you on the list of highest-paid athletes? … Man, you make as much as an NFL rookie. Congratulations.”
After knocking out Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira in three straight fights, Topria has become one of the sport’s biggest stars.
“Well, you’re wrong,” Topria said. “The difference between me and you is that your value is based on perception and you need to market it. You need to tell all your fans how much money you make because you need to realize what you’re missing.”
White entered the boxing world and signed Conor Benn with Zuffa Boxing to a $15 million deal, angering numerous UFC fighters including Sean O’Malley and Michael Page.
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“His owner is Dana, and they just paid Conor Benn $15 million,” Paul said. “That should bother you.”
While fighter wallets are rarely seen publicly, Topuria responded boldly.
“It doesn’t bother me because I make more than that,” Topriya said.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Jake Paul and Ilia Topuria debate UFC fighter pay
