‘Champion’s purse’ – Figueiredo reveals why he’s now managed by Urijah Faber

Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC

UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo has signed a new management contract. The UFC flyweight champion has parted ways with his long-time manager, Wallid Ismail. According to the news o…


UFC champion Deiveson Figueiredo
Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC

UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo has signed a new management contract.

The UFC flyweight champion has parted ways with his long-time manager, Wallid Ismail. According to the news originally broken out by Combate, but later on confirmed by Deiveson Figueiredo himself, the Brazilian is now under the management of another UFC veteran in Urijah Faber.

Per Combate, Deiveson has signed a contract with Vayne Sports, a company owned by Faber and Lloyd Pierson. They are also responsible for managing the careers of other well-known MMA athletes, such as Stipe Miocic, Chris Weidman, Sean O’Malley and Tony Ferguson, among others.

On his personal Instagram account, Figueiredo shared the news, while writing an excited message to Faber and his fans.

“Welcome my friend and now entrepreneur Urijah Faber. I’m happy with this new moment, the decision to be with you is aiming for the top in the organization I’m part of the UFC and I know well of your competence as a great entrepreneur to lead me in the best way and excellence . We continue together now.”

The UFC champion revealed that the management change was due to him not being happy with his purse.

“Our disagreement was based on numbers,” Figueiredo told Sherdog. “When I was champion and fought [Brandon] Moreno at UFC 263, my purse was $200,000 to show plus $100,000 to win plus pay-per-view points. In the third fight [at UFC 270], when I regained my belt, it was $100,000 (to show) plus $100,000 (to win) — that’s not a champion´s purse. I called Wallid and apologized to him for some bad stuff I said to the press when I was angry, but we parted ways.”

In his last outing, Figueiredo (21-2-1) defeated Brandon Moreno in their trilogy bout, back in January 2022. Although the pair was expected to fight again in July, hand injuries have prevented ‘Daico’ to compete until late into this year.

For this reason, the promotion decided to creat an interim title, which will be disputed between Moreno and Kai Kara-France, at UFC 277, on July 30.