One of the most prolific fighters in mixed martial arts today, Ronda Rousey, will face off against the UFC’s undefeated bantamweight and No. 1 contender in Cat Zingano at UFC 184 . The champion is arguably MMA’s most talked about personality and is undeniably a huge draw for the UFC. Not only is she undefeated, but Rousey has beaten every one of her opponents with ease. The 28-year-old is an Olympic medalist and largely responsible for the advent of women’s MMA in the UFC.
In that, according to Bloody Elbow , the California native is slated to make more than $1 million in her bout against Zingano on Saturday night at the Los Angeles Staples Center. Los Angeles Times journalist Lance Pugmire stated (via Twitter) that through pay-per-view points, UFC 184 could mark one of the largest pay days of Rousey’s career.
Told by @ufc official that @RondaRousey pay per view back end cut will allow her to surpass 1 million in earnings for this fight.
— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) February 27, 2015
Given that, many were surprised at that the challenger’s guaranteed pay of $100,000 (show)/$100,000 (win) as opposed to that of Rousey ($65,000/$65,000).
California commission tells me @RondaRousey guaranteed purse is 65,000 dollars and 65,000 more with a win.
— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) February 27, 2015
And @CatZingano gets 100,000 guarantee plus 100,000 for a win.
— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) February 27, 2015
However, Bloody Elbow reported that the champion could expect to make at least $500,000 if she generated pay-per-view buys of 300,000 or more.
“Rousey’s contract is reported to include PPV points that are paid on a tiered basis… she can expect to make around half a million dollars if the show sells 300,000 or more PPVs.”
Irrespective of her base pay, Rousey will win out tremendously in the end with her pay-per-view points and sponsorship deal with Reebok.
For Zingano, UFC 184 marks the biggest payday of her career thus far. Against Amanda Nunes at UFC 178 , she made just $9,000/$9,000 . Even if she loses at UFC 184 , Zingano will still earn more than 10 times her base purse from her last fight.
A win by Zingano against the self-proclaimed “ greatest fighter of all time ” would most likely lead to even larger pay outs and represents a “ huge deal ” for the 32-year-old who has “a lot of respect for her (Rousey) and everything she’s done.”
“I’m grateful for everything [Rousey’s] done, the way she’s out there. She’s played it right, gotten the attention, gotten the hype.”
[Featured Image by Jason Merritt/Getty Images]
