Report Reveals Ex-UFC Star Nate Diaz was still on a $20,000/$20,000 contract ahead of Conor McGregor fight
Though he never captured UFC gold, Nate Diaz was undoubtedly one of the top stars in the promotion for many years. That much was proven when he was paired up with Conor McGregor on two separate occasions, producing two of the highest-grossing pay-per-views in UFC history.
However, it appears as though the ‘Stockton Samurai’ was rarely paid his worth. At least, up until his blockbuster bout with the Irishman and their equally successful sequel.
Per a recent report from Anton Tabuena of Bloody Elbow, Nate Diaz walked away with a meager $56,000 for his fight with former lightweight world champion Rafael dos Anjos in 2014. At the time, it was Diaz’s 20th fight with the promotion, not including three exhibition bouts while competing in season five of The Ultimate Fighter.
Nate Diaz was still on a 20k/20k contract Nearly a decade into his run with the UFC
Diaz’s disclosed payout at the time was a modest $16,000, but documents pertaining to the UFC’s current $1.6 billion class action lawsuit revealed that additional undisclosed payouts associated with the fight put his total purse at $56,000. In his prior fight against Gray Maynard, Diaz left with a disclosed purse of $80,000 which included $15,000 to show, a $15,000 win bonus, and a $50,000 performance bonus.
According to Bloody Elbow’s latest report, Diaz actually walked away with a payout somewhere in the range of $125,000 to $180,000.
Things drastically changed for Nate Diaz after scoring his first fight with Conor McGregor. The TUF alumnus bagged an impressive $2.8 million for their first meeting and $4.3 million for the sequel.
The report also noted that Diaz was still on a $20,000/$20,000 contract with the UFC by the time he reached his 21st bout with the promotion. That would have been his win over Michael Johnson at UFC on FOX 17, one fight after facing RDA and one fight before his first meeting with McGregor. However, Diaz also had a Letter of Agreement that paid an additional $40,000 that was not disclosed to the athletic commission or the public.
Diaz recently received a $15 million offer from Jake Paul and Donn Davis, founder of the PFL, in hopes of booking a rematch between the two following their entertaining 10-round boxing bout in August. Thus far, Diaz has seemingly turned down the deal, much to the chagrin of the ‘Problem Child’ and Davis.
