‘UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez’ Fighter Salaries

The California State Athletic Commission released the figures from this past weekend’s “UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez” $1.513 million payroll. Main-event participant Brock Lesnar topped the list with his $400,000 base salary. Lesnar’s opponent and new UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez earned $200,000.

Three other fighters on the card earned over $100,000 on the night — Tito Ortiz, Jake Shields, and Diego Sanchez.

Here is the full list:

Cain Velasquez: $200,000 (includes $100,000 win bonus)
def. Brock Lesnar: $400,000

Jake Shields: $150,000 ($75,000 win bonus)
def. Martin Kampmann: $27,000

Diego Sanchez: $100,000 ($50,000 win bonus)
def. Paulo Thiago: $18,000

Matt Hamill: $58,000 ($29,000 win bonus)
def. Tito Ortiz: $250,000

Brendan Schaub: $20,000 ($10,000 win bonus)
def. Gabriel Gonzaga: $67,000

Court McGee: $30,000 ($15,000 win bonus)
def. Ryan Jensen: $10,000

Tom Lawlor: $20,000 ($10,000 win bonus)
def. Patrick Cote: $21,000

Daniel Roberts: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus)
def. Mike Guymon: $8,000

Sam Stout: $32,000 ($16,000 win bonus)
def. Paul Taylor: $16,000

Chris Camozzi: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus)
def. Dongi Yang: $8,000

Jon Madsen: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus)
def. Gilbert Yvel: $30,000

Now here is the usual disclaimer from MMAjunkie.com:

The figures do not include deductions for items such as insurance, licenses and taxes. Additionally, the figures do not include money paid by sponsors, which can oftentimes be a substantial portion of a fighter’s income. They also do not include any other “locker room” or special bonuses the UFC oftentimes pays. They also do not include portions of the pay-per-view revenue that some top-level fighters receive.

For example, as previously reported, UFC officials handed out $70,000 UFC 121 bonuses to Velasquez (KO of the Night), Roberts (Submission of the Night), and Sanchez and Thiago (Fight of the Night).

In other words, the above figures are simply base salaries reported to the commission and do not reflect entire compensation packages for the event.