Curtis Blaydes Earns $312,000, Askar Askarov $26,000, At UFC Columbus

Curtis Blaydes defeated Chris Daukaus via knockout at UFC Columbus on March 26th. According to Ohio State Athletic Commission salary data, he earned a total purse of $312,000, reported to MMA Fighting on Tuesday.

Blaydes earned $131,000 to show, $131,000 for his win, and a $50,000 performance of the night bonus. Meanwhile, flyweight Askar Askarov, a freestyle wrestling gold medalist and former number-two ranked flyweight contender, earned $26,000 following his defeat at the hands of Kai Kara-France, according to the commission.

Ohio is one of three states that reports fighter pay publicly. However, the payout data from the commission does not account for undisclosed pay, which can include sponsorship deals and other earnings.

Kara-France earned a total payout of $102,000, with $51,000 to show and $51,000 for his win. Kara-France is a part of City Kickboxing, home of Israel Adesanya, current UFC middleweight champion, and Eugene Bachman, the founder and head trainer.

For context on disclosed payouts, below is a passage from my interview with Adesanya on fighter pay: “I just signed this new deal with the UFC. No one knows what I’m getting paid. Everyone sees what’s disclosed [but] you don’t know what the undisclosed is.”

Fighter pay has been a hot topic amongst UFC fans for some time, with Triller co-founder Ryan Kavanaugh calling the contracts “indentured servitude.” Adesanya felt similarly from the outside looking in, saying the following on Twitter back in 2018.

“When I was just a fan of the UFC I used to feel this way about the fighter pay. Trust me when I say none of you have any idea what goes on behind the scenes. There’s a reason it’s called ‘disclosed’ pay… I’m just playing the game.”

Fans have lambasted both the promotion and Askarov’s management team, citing the pay discrepancy between Askarov and Kara-France, when Askarov is ranked higher. However, others have said the pay disparity is due to the contract, irrespective of rank.

Blaydes, despite the decisive victory, is likely set for a long layoff following an injury sustained during the fight. Meanwhile, Kara-France has been called out by both former flyweight champion Brandon Moreno and current champion Deiveson Figueiredo.