THE CANADIAN PRESS
Former heavyweight champion Tim (The Maine-iac) Sylvia made US$200,000 for defeating Brandon (The Truth) Vera at UFC 77 in Cincinnati on Saturday, according to purse figures released Wednesday by the Ohio Athletic Commission.
Vera’s payday — which included a $100,000 win bonus — was bigger than the basic $120,000 purse earned by Anderson Silva in defending his middleweight title against Rich Franklin in the main event. Silva’s purse was $60,000 plus an equivalent win bonus.
The Brazilian collected another $40,000 for the KO of the night award to up his purse to $160,000.
The official purse figures do not necessarily tell the whole story since they do not always reflect bonuses and other clauses inserted in the fighters’ UFC contracts. Marquee names can get a lucrative slice of the pay per view, for example.
Fighters who win in the UFC usually double their purse via a win bonus.
Franklin made $45,000 for fighting Silva while Vera earned $100,000 for the loss to Sylvia.
Jason MacDonald of Red Deer, Alta, picked up $17,000 for his loss via decision to Japan’s Yushin Okami, who made $24,000. Fellow middleweight Kalib Starnes of Surrey, B.C., collected $7,000 in a losing cause against Alan (The Talent) Belcher, who picked up $24,000 for winning via doctor stoppage in the second round.
In other bouts:
— Light-heavyweight Stephan Bonnar made $44,000 for stopping Eric Schafer ($6,000).
— Welterweight Josh Burkman collected $20,000 for beating Forrest Petz ($6,000).
— Lightweight Alvin Robinson earned $6,000 for defeating Jorge Gurgel ($7,000).
— Brazilian Demian Maia made $10,000 for downing Ryan Jensen ($4,000). The Brazilian picked up a $40,000 bonus for submission of the night.
— Lightweight Matt Grice got $6,000 for a decision over Jason Black ($8,000). Each collected another $40,000 for being named fight of the night.
The gate for the card was $2,519,850 — a record for the U.S. Bank Arena — with attendance of 16,054.
Total purse, not counting special bonuses, was $652,000.
