Daniel Cormier claims UFC fighters are already being paid more as Paramount debut looms

As UFC enters the Paramount era, discussions about fighter pay have resurfaced.

Many have wondered how the athletes will benefit without the pay-per-view model. UFC CEO Dana White didn’t share much details, but he did tell reporters that payouts for fighters will increase.

Speaking to Josh Thomson on the “Weighing In” podcast, Cormier claimed that some UFC stars are already enjoying a bump before UFC’s first show on Paramount+ (via MMAFighting).

“They’re already getting more money, that’s the difference,” Cormier said. “People always talk about, ‘What’s the UFC going to do for the fighter?’ I know guys now… ‘Well pay-per-view’s going away, what are they going to do?’ I know guys now that are making more money than they did even when they were making pay-per-view, because pay-per-views just, maybe, weren’t selling as much as they used to.

“Whenever we were fighting and I was fighting Jon Jones and [Anthony] ‘Rumble’ Johnson, and having Nick Diaz, Nate Diaz on my card, I was making a boatload of money in pay-per-view. That’s not the reality of today.”

The first event to begin UFC’s partnership with Paramount is scheduled to take place on Jan. 24. Paddy Pimblett and Justin Gaethje will collide with the interim UFC Lightweight Championship at stake. That bout will headline UFC 324.

Also featured on the card will be a women’s bantamweight title dream match. Champion Kayla Harrison will meet the former 135-pound ruler Amanda Nunes, who is ending her retirement.

Sean O’Malley will compete on the UFC 324 card as well. The former bantamweight king seeks to climb back up the ladder. Standing in his way is Song Yadong, and the two will clash inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Another pivotal bantamweight fight booked for UFC 324 is Umar Nurmagomedov vs Deiveson Figueiredo.

Head over to the BJPenn.com homepage to stay updated on the UFC 324 card.