UFC 285 purses: Jon Jones minimum take-home salary revealed ahead of HW debut as pay second to Conor McGregor
JON JONES is set to earn a career-high payday when he returns to the UFC this weekend.
The former pound-for-pound king will end his three-year hiatus on Saturday night in the main event of UFC 285 in Las Vegas, where he’ll challenge Ciryl Gane for the vacant heavyweight title.
Jones’ hiatus was in part down to a pay row with the UFC over a potential clash with Francis Ngannou, who recently left the promotion.
But SunSport revealed last year that the impasse was crossed by both parties.
Jones has inked a bumper new eight-fight deal with mixed martial arts’ top promotion, which kicks off with his bid for heavyweight glory.
And he’ll cash in the biggest purse of his career when he sets foot inside the cage with Gane in Las Vegas.
The purse disclosed to the Nevada State Athletic Commission won’t be released to the public as records have become private.
But the absolute bare minimum Jones will receive for the fight is $500,000, the fee he was paid for his UFC 214 clash with Daniel Cormier in July 2017.
It’s likely, Jones will receive a guaranteed purse $2million for the fight as his new deal has made him the second-highest-paid fighter on the roster.
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Conor McGregor is the highest-paid fighter in UFC history and has taken home guaranteed purses of $3million for his last four fights.
Like McGregor, Jones’ final purse will be topped up by special discretionary bonuses and his respective cut of the pay-per-view pie.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, Jones’ advisor Richard Schaefer said of his bumper new deal: “I think UFC realises that Jon Jones is the GOAT.
“He is a generational talent, so they were very much interested and very open to work with us and come to the conclusion of putting together a fair deal, which we did here.
“That deal we made for Jon makes Jon in the history of the UFC, the highest-paid heavyweight athlete.
“Overall, I think probably the second-highest ever next to Conor McGregor.
“So, it was a long negotiation but it was not a hostile negotiation.
“It wasn’t where both sides dug their heels in.
“I think both sides wanted to find a way.
“We found a way and here it is.
“It was a contract that made both parties happy. Maybe it made both parties a little bit unhappy as well.
“I think in order for this to happen, every side had to give a little bit.
“We are very pleased and I’m sure UFC is pleased.
“I’m sure Jon is very happy to be back and get this opportunity to fight for the heavyweight title.”