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how much does justin gaethje make per fight

Justin Gaethje is currently estimated to earn around low-to-mid seven figures per fight , with recent headline bouts paying roughly 1.6–2.4 million dollars total , and current projections placing him in the 1.8–3 million dollar range per fight when all bonuses and PPV upside are included.

How much does Justin Gaethje make per fight?

Quick Scoop

  • Recent big fights have seen Gaethje earn:
    • About $1.66 million vs Rafael Fiziev at UFC 313 (total package: base, bonuses, PPV, etc.).
* About **$2.37 million** vs Max Holloway at UFC 300.
  • For his upcoming stretch of fights (like UFC 324), estimates suggest:
    • Guaranteed purse (show money) : roughly $750,000–$900,000.
* **Win bonus** : often **matched** to the base, another **$750,000–$900,000** if he wins.

* **PPV / promotional bonuses** : estimated **$300,000–$1,200,000** depending on sales and performance.

* **Total estimated per fight now** : about **$1.8M–$3.0M**.

So when fans ask “how much does Justin Gaethje make per fight?” , the current realistic ballpark for his top-level UFC main event bouts is around 2 million dollars, give or take, and potentially up toward 3 million on a big night.

These are reported and estimated figures from media, not official UFC disclosures, so the real numbers could be somewhat higher or lower.

What makes up his per-fight pay?

Gaethje’s pay is not just a simple flat salary. It’s a stack of different income pieces per event.

1. Base purse (“show money”)

  • This is what he gets just for showing up and fighting , win or lose.
  • Current estimates put his show money in the high six-figure range, around $750k–$900k.

2. Win bonus

  • Many UFC contracts use the “show + win” structure.
  • For Gaethje at this level, reports suggest his win bonus is roughly equal to his show money , meaning another $750k–$900k if he wins.

3. PPV and promotional bonuses

  • As a proven headliner and fan favorite, Gaethje is believed to get a cut of PPV-related revenue or similar “back-end” compensation on big cards like UFC 300 and UFC 324.
  • This back-end piece is where his total jumps into the multi-million range , with estimates of $300k up to about $1.2M or more when the card does big numbers.

4. Performance bonuses and extras

  • UFC “Fight of the Night” and “Performance of the Night” bonuses are usually $50,000 each.
  • Gaethje is famous for wild, high-action fights and has accumulated around 14 UFC bonuses , which alone total roughly $700k (some sources quote around $900k depending on counting and timing).
  • While that’s spread over his whole UFC run rather than a single night, it shows how often he adds an extra 50k+ on top of an already large purse.

Recent figure snapshots

Here’s a quick look at a few of his reported or estimated payouts:

[3][1] [5][3][1] [1]
Event / Opponent Estimated Total Earnings Notes
UFC 300 vs Max Holloway ≈ $2.37 million Includes base, bonuses, and reported PPV/back-end share.
UFC 313 vs Rafael Fiziev ≈ $1.66 million Listed in salary breakdowns as his total event payout.
UFC 324 (projected) ≈ $1.8M–$3.0M Projected using base purse, win bonus, and PPV/promotional upside.
Over his UFC run, some breakdowns estimate his **career UFC earnings** (fight pay only) in the **$5–6 million** range before counting newer mega-events like UFC 300 and beyond.

Why the numbers vary so much

There’s no single fixed “Justin Gaethje salary per fight” because several moving parts affect each purse.

  • Event size: Huge cards like UFC 300 or title fights tend to bring bigger back-end money and promotion bonuses.
  • Card placement: Headlining or co-headlining main events usually means more leverage and better terms, including PPV cuts.
  • Contract stage: Earlier in his UFC career, Gaethje’s base pay was far lower; his current earnings reflect him being a top-tier, proven draw.
  • Performance and bonuses: His style makes him a frequent bonus winner , adding extra income that not every fighter sees.

So when fans on forums toss around figures like “2–3 million a fight now,” that’s actually a reasonable range for his recent headline bouts , but it doesn’t mean that was his pay across his whole career.

What Gaethje himself says about his pay

Interestingly, even with these big figures in the news, Gaethje has publicly said he hasn’t seen a raise tied to the UFC’s huge new media deals.

  • Ahead of UFC 324, he said he’s “not getting $1 more” despite the UFC’s multi‑billion‑dollar broadcast deal with Paramount+/CBS, reportedly worth about $7.7 billion.
  • He has also pointed out that, despite holding a record number of post-fight bonuses, the totals might not be as enormous as fans imagine when compared to the size of overall UFC revenues.

That tension—high six and seven‑figure per-fight pay for stars, but even higher revenue for the promotion—is a frequent topic in forum discussion and fighter interviews.

TL;DR – how much does Justin Gaethje make per fight?

  • Typical recent range (big events): Around $1.8M–$3M total per fight, including base, win bonus, bonuses, and PPV/back-end.
  • Specific examples:
    • About $1.66M vs Fiziev at UFC 313.
* About **$2.37M** vs Holloway at UFC 300.
  • Key drivers: High show money, matched win bonus, PPV share, and frequent performance bonuses.

All figures are media estimates based on reported payouts and analyst breakdowns, not officially audited disclosures, but they provide a solid picture of what Gaethje likely earns per fight at this stage of his career.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.