The Nevada State Athletic Commission has released the official salaries for all of the contestants who competed in Saturday’s “The Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale” event.
Despite appearing in the card’s prelims, Mike Pyle was the night’s highest earner. The veteran made $78,000, with half of his paycheck coming via win bonus, for beating James Head.
Roy Nelson (Pictured) scored $48k for his TKO victory over Matt Mitrione in the show’s featured contest. Mitrione, meanwhile, took home $12,000 for his efforts.
Although it’s not listed below, UFC president Dana White said he would pay Melvin Guillard his show purse after Jamie Varner withdrew from their bout at the 11th hour.
Please keep in mind, the numbers that get reported to the athletic commissions are only of what’s required. These figures do not include deductions for items such as licenses and taxes.
Additionally, they do not contain money paid by sponsors or any bonuses from the UFC. These royalties can include Fight Night bonuses, top secret discretionary bonuses, etc., which can oftentimes represent a substantial portion of a fighter’s total income.
The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas hosted Saturday’s event.
Here are the official salaries for TUF 16 Finale:
Preliminary Card:
(Total disclosed payroll $447,000)
Timothy Elliott: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
vs. Jared Papazian: $6,000Mike Rio: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
vs. John Cofer: $6,000Hugo Viana: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
vs. Reuben Duran: $8,000Anthony Waldburger: $28,000 (includes $14,000 win bonus)
vs. Nick Catone: $13,000Rustam Khabilov: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
vs. Vinc Pichel: $8,000Johnny Bedford: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
vs. Marcos Vinicius: $8,000Mike Pyle: $78,000 (includes $39,000 win bonus)
vs. James Head: $12,000Main Card:
Dustin Poirier: $34,000 (includes $17,000 win bonus)
vs. Jonathan Brookins: $20,000Patrick Barry: $44,000 (includes $22,000 win bonus)
vs. Shane Del Rosario: $20,000Colton Smith: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
vs. Mike Ricci: $8,000Roy Nelson: $48,000 (includes $24,000 win bonus)
vs. Matt Mitrione: $12,000
