Conor McGregor vs Cerrone: Prize money revealed as Irishman expects biggest pay day of his UFC career
Conor McGregor is set for his latest mega pay day this weekend when the Irishman returns to headline UFC 246 in his fight against Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone.
McGregor has not been seen in the UFC since his UFC 229 defeat against Khabib Nurmagomedov, who inflicted a second career defeat on the Dubliner following his initial loss to Nate Diaz.
But despite the defeat, McGregor has never been one to be short on cash since his UFC career took off, and this Saturday night will only continue to swell his bank balance in what will be a multi-million dollar pay day.
It’s understood that McGregor will collect a minimum $5m (£3.8m) from the 11th UFC fight of his career, regardless of whether he wins or loses.
But the former featherweight and lightweight champion claims he will make significantly more than that through the additional endorsements and bonuses that will come his way, with the 31-year-old insisting that he stands to receive his most lucrative fight purse yet.
McGregor made $3m (£2.3m) from his bouts against Khabib Nurmagomedov and Eddie Alvarez, though the UFC’s prize money has increased since those bouts and the attention surrounding his return is expected to bring with it a Pay Per View (PPV) hike.
Yet when speaking in the build-up to the Las Vegas bout, McGregor revealed that he believes his total income from the fight will be in excess of £60m.
“It’s going to be a good pay cheque,” McGregor told ESPN. “Probably the most ever in my mixed martial arts career... I’m estimating a good £60m.
“We have Australia, Canada and England and Ireland... it should be a good one.
“(I made) £38.5m (against Khabib). They think I’m toast but I’m still the bread.”
Despite being the side-kick in the lead up to the event, Cerrone also stands for the biggest pay cheque of his career with his guaranteed $2m on the night, but having previously claimed either the Performance of the Night or Fight of the Night bonus on no fewer that 16 times in his well-travelled career, ‘Cowboy’ will be eyeing ways to add to his healthy pay cheque this weekend.
The majority of money raised from the bout will come through pay-per-view purchases, with British viewers having to buy the fight on BT Sport Box Office for £19.95 while the American audience face ridiculous fees of up to $85 (£65) just for the full fight card alone.
However, McGregor’s £60m prediction falls short of the healthy package he took home from his one and only foray into boxing when he earned a reported £65m to fight Floyd Mayweather in 2017.
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