Jose Aldo: MMA fighters practically pay to fight

BARUERI, Brazil — UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo wants more money.

Coming off an epic five-round title defense against Chad Mendes in the main event of UFC 179 in Rio de Janeiro in October, Aldo host a Q&A before the official UFC Fight Night 58 weigh-ins in Barueri, Brazil, and once again asked for better salaries for MMA fighters.

When asked about the money UFC and other MMA promotions pay their athletes in comparison to what the likes of Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao make in boxing, Aldo said MMA organizations don’t pay enough.

“The athlete is not treated like he deserves. We deserve better,” Aldo said on Friday. “I’m not speaking only about the UFC, but about the media as well. The fans treat us really well. We suffer a lot and live to do a show. We get paid way less than we deserve. We deliver shows and deserve to get paid more. We practically pay to do this. You deserve to get better paid if you sell the fight.”

Aldo, who turned 28-years old weeks before improving to 25-1 in MMA with one more win over Mendes, hopes the situation changes in the future, but he probably won’t be around to benefit from it.

“To get closer to boxing is complicated, but it would be great,” he said. “Boxing is in the culture around the world for a long time, while the UFC is new and is still growing. I think it’s hard to get closer to what boxing pays their athletes, but we work for that. If they do get closer one day, I think I’ll be retired already.”

BARUERI, Brazil — UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo wants more money.

Coming off an epic five-round title defense against Chad Mendes in the main event of UFC 179 in Rio de Janeiro in October, Aldo host a Q&A before the official UFC Fight Night 58 weigh-ins in Barueri, Brazil, and once again asked for better salaries for MMA fighters.

When asked about the money UFC and other MMA promotions pay their athletes in comparison to what the likes of Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao make in boxing, Aldo said MMA organizations don’t pay enough.

“The athlete is not treated like he deserves. We deserve better,” Aldo said on Friday. “I’m not speaking only about the UFC, but about the media as well. The fans treat us really well. We suffer a lot and live to do a show. We get paid way less than we deserve. We deliver shows and deserve to get paid more. We practically pay to do this. You deserve to get better paid if you sell the fight.”

Aldo, who turned 28-years old weeks before improving to 25-1 in MMA with one more win over Mendes, hopes the situation changes in the future, but he probably won’t be around to benefit from it.

“To get closer to boxing is complicated, but it would be great,” he said. “Boxing is in the culture around the world for a long time, while the UFC is new and is still growing. I think it’s hard to get closer to what boxing pays their athletes, but we work for that. If they do get closer one day, I think I’ll be retired already.”