Celebrity boxing star and Youtuber Jake Paul has rung in the new year with a proposal for UFC President Dana White.
Paul has offered to retire from boxing, sign a one-fight deal with the UFC to face Jorge Masvidal, and undergo USADA testing if White agrees to raise minimum fighter pay to $50,000 and split revenue with athletes 50-50.
Paul tagged the UFC exec in his initial post making the offer, following months of feuding with White. In it, he listed three demands that he expects the UFC to put in place by March 31, 2022.
1. Increase min fighter pay per fight to $50K (it’s 12K now)
2. Guarantee UFC fighters 50% of UFC annual revenues ($1bn in 2021)
3. Provide long term healthcare to all fighters (you previously said brain damage is part of the gig… imagine the NFL said that). There are many UFC alums who have publicly said they are suffering from brain damage.
You have 5 days to accept and implement the above by March 31, 2022. Once implemented I will immediately retire from boxing, enter USADA and agree to a 1 fight deal with UFC to fight weak chin Jorge.
To all UFC fighters – time to take a stand and create value for yourselves and peers. You deserve higher pay, you deserve long term healthcare and above all you deserve freedom. Support each other. I am not your enemy, I am your advocate… who selfishly wants to KO a few of you to make some big bank.
Currently under contract with SHOWTIME, Paul has been a vocal critic of UFC fighter pay — though his concern has often appeared to center on attracting crossover stars to the boxing realm.
Paul currently holds a 5-0 record in boxing, although he has yet to actually compete against a boxer. His transition to the sweet science after rising to fame on video sharing app Vine and Youtube has been wildly successful thus far, although recent numbers for Paul vs. Woodley 2 suggest interest may be waning.
Of late, Paul has kept his focus on boxing mixed martial artists — knocking out Ben Askren, defeating Tyron Woodley via split decision, then knocking “T-Wood” out in their rematch. Paul held a significant size advantage over both men, and has continued to call out smaller, older fighters for crossover bouts. That includes Masvidal, Nate Diaz, and Conor McGregor — none of whom have competed higher than 170lbs in the UFC, and the latter of which is best known for his featherweight run.
The UFC has traditionally paid about anywhere from 16 to 19% of revenue to its fighters — far, far below the average of most professional sports leagues.
