How Much Dricus Earned

So just how much does a fighter earn to get punched in the face? Or rather, in the case of an undefeated fighter like South Africa's Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis, how much does he get paid to punch someone in the face or, in Sean Strickland's case, break someone's nose?

- Clinton Jones

The simple answer is a lot. But before we get to Du Plessis' payday from his dominant second-title defence over American Strickland in Sydney at the weekend, let's go back to the beginning. Du Plessis earned his first UFC contract in October 2020 after dominating the African and European mixed martial art scene for a number of years.

In the African organisation - the Extreme Fighting Championship - Du Plessis was the first double champion, dominating the welterweight and middleweight divisions. He was also the welterweight champion in KSW, one of Europe's elite organisations. He eventually dropped out of the welterweight division to concentrate on becoming the world's best middleweight.