Brendan Allen says UFC fighters are underpaid, then apologizes to the boss
After submitting Duncan, the middleweight praised Sean Strickland’s push for more money, then walked it back in the same answer: “I didn’t mean nothing by it, Hunter.”
Brendan Allen left UFC Vegas 122 with his fourth straight win, a $100,000 bonus and a controversy on his hands. At the press conference after he submitted Christian Leroy Duncan with a rear-naked choke in the fifth round on Saturday (Oct. 10) in Las Vegas, the middleweight said UFC fighters are underpaid, praised champion Sean Strickland for his public fight over pay and, in the same answer, apologized to Hunter Campbell, the promotion’s chief business officer.
From praise to an apology
Allen was asked about the dispute between Strickland and the UFC. He first joked that the reporter was trying to put him on the spot and said nobody would ever hear him complain about his pay. Still, he admitted it: “I’d love to have more money. Who ain’t going to want to have more money?” In his view, fighters who don’t depend on fighting to pay the bills have more freedom to push back. “So the guys that don’t need to fight, that can speak up and, you know, make those stances for more money… God bless you. I wish I could do that.”
He then called himself a simple guy from Louisiana who is satisfied with his purse. “I’m happy with what I get paid,” he said. “There’s many people where I’m from that wish they could make what I make. So I’m very thankful.” Allen added that he doesn’t want to come across as greedy.
The support for the champion came right after that. “But hats off to Sean for speaking up, for trying to get more money, because if you look at the scope of things based on the statistics that are out there, we are underpaid,” he said. It didn’t last long. Allen followed up by saying “I ain’t trying to get canceled, at least from the bosses,” repeated that he likes his paycheck, mentioned that his car collection is still growing and closed with a direct message to the executive: “I didn’t mean nothing by it, Hunter. I apologize.”
The clip spread on social media and exposed a familiar dilemma in the UFC: many fighters agree that pay is low, but few feel comfortable saying it in public, especially when they are close to a title shot.
Strickland threatens to give up the belt
The backdrop is the standoff between Strickland and the UFC. The American won back the middleweight title in May at UFC 328, beating Khamzat Chimaev by split decision. Over the past week, he has used X to criticize the promotion. “I gotta be honest unless things change with the UFC I’m kinda over it,” he wrote. In another post, he compared his pay to Conor McGregor’s: “McGregor makes 30 million to fight for 30 second and they don’t want to pay us a fraction of it.”
Strickland also floated giving up the title, moving up to light heavyweight and running out his contract as fast as possible, with his eyes on a boxing match against Jake Paul. Paul replied on social media, inviting the champion to reach out to his company, MVP, once he is free. Meanwhile, his title defense against France’s Nassourdine Imavov still has no date, and negotiations have stalled over money.
What is at stake for Allen
Allen’s caution makes sense. At 28-7, he is in the best run of his career at middleweight and, while still in the Octagon, he called for a fight with former champion Dricus du Plessis. In a division where the champion is threatening to leave and the next title fight is up in the air, Allen made clear which side he is on, but stopped short of taking on the fight himself.
The win over Duncan also earned Allen a $100,000 Performance of the Night bonus.
Read more about how Brendan Allen beat Christian Leroy Duncan: Brendan Allen chokes out Duncan in round five and calls for Du Plessis.
What do you think: is Brendan Allen right that UFC fighters are underpaid, or was he smart to walk it back and apologize? Tell us in the comments.
