Cris Cyborg has backed her former opponent Amanda Nunes, claiming she deserves higher pay for her fights.
At UFC 250 last weekend, Amanda Nunes defended her featherweight title against Felicia Spencer by unanimous decision victory. Despite tallying her 11th consecutive victory and her status as a two-division champ, “The Lioness” reportedly only earned $450,000 from the headliner fight.
Cyborg lost by shocking knockout in 2018 to Nunes. Despite their history, Cyborg things Nunes deserves to be paid more.
Nunes deserves to be getting a million every fight. Hopefully with total compensation she’s getting that… https://t.co/vvoeXJejLC
— @CrisCyborg on Youtube (@criscyborg) June 7, 2020
“Nunes deserves to be getting a million every fight. Hopefully, with total compensation she’s getting that…” Cris Cyborg wrote.
Fighter’s pay has been a hot topic as of recent. UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones threatened to vacate his title after feeling undervalued by the company and rising tensions over a possible Francis Ngannou fight. Jorge Masvidal also claimed he is not getting paid what he is worth. Both fighters feel short-changed by the UFC president Dana White, who is still focused on securing a Fight Island to host future events.
Former heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia came out last week to accuse the organization of leaving him hanging. The 44-year old suffered complications stemming from a broken arm injury he received at UFC 48 against Frank Mir in 2004. According to Sylvia, the surgery to repair his arm was initially paid for by the UFC. But 16 years later, his arm has given him many “problems.” The fighter asked for support from the company, who rejected his request. Now, his fiance has set up a GoFundMe page to pay for treatment on his worsening condition.
Cyborg also left the organization after ongoing disputes with the UFC’s president and has since signed a lucrative contract with rival organization, Bellator. In the past, she has been very critical of the companies’ practices and their treatment of fighters.
All scenarios raise questions over the way the organization values its talent. Do you think fighters need to be paid more?