Despite all the talk of a “new era,” Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighters may still be making the same salary.
With the Paramount+ era officially set to kick off this weekend (Saturday, January 24, 2026) with UFC 324 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, questions about fighter pay are once again in the spotlight — especially after the promotion finalized a $7.7 billion broadcast deal with the streaming giant.
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UFC 324 headlines despite optimism that the massive deal will eventually translate into better pay for players Justin Gaethje Says nothing has changed – at least not for him.
Not even a dollar.
Last month, the former two-division champion and UFC broadcaster Daniel Cormier Suggesting that the fighters “already get more money” under the new deal. But Gaethje, who headlined the first event of the Paramount+ partnership, shut down the event flatly during UFC 324 media days (watch here).
“Having 14 bonuses and not reaching $1 million — that’s not right,” Gaethje said. “It should have been much more than that, and I should have had the opportunity to do smarter things with my money — but I didn’t, and I didn’t.”
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“I heard Daniel Cormier say that everyone is going to get paid more with this card,” he added. “If this deal hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have gotten a dollar more money. I’m happy with what I accomplished, and probably the best thing I did was invest in commercial real estate.”
Worryingly, the headliners of the inaugural Paramount+ event did not receive a raise, raising some troubling questions about how — or if — new broadcast money will flow to athletes who risk their health inside the Octagon.
To be fair, Gaethje is still competing under a contract he signed before the Paramount+ deal was finalized, which would explain why no immediate changes were made. Nonetheless, UFC CEO Dana White It had previously been hinted that the bonus structure would increase under the new partnership – something that has yet to materialize publicly.
Currently, the “new era” looks a lot like the old era.
If UFC 324’s face doesn’t see the bump, it’s hard to imagine anyone else on the roster will…yet.
For the latest and greatest UFC 324 news and notes, click here.
