Midnight Mania: Weidman Confirms UFC Paid Him For UFC 309 Cancellation … But Not Full Purse

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Welcome to Midnight Mania!

UFC 309 was supposed to be a huge moment for Chris Weidman.

The former Middleweight champion was fighting in his home state of New York, trying to score his first victory in Madison Square Garden after two previous defeats in the world-famous arena. Unfortunately, his opponent Eryk Anders was forced to withdraw due to food poisoning at the very last second, ultimately delaying the fight until UFC 310 on December 7.

Weidman invested a lot into the fight, a full training camp and travel for his team. Speaking with Ariel Helwani, Weidman also revealed that he had a lot of family and friends who bought tickets and then were unable to sell them because the cancellation didn’t happen until the event already started.

When fights are cancelled after weigh-ins, it’s always a question of whether or not the athlete will be compensated. Notably, former Welterweight title challenger, Stephen Thompson, had to really fight for his paycheck last year after Michel Pereira bombed the weigh-ins so badly that he was forced out of the division. Fortunately, Weidman will receive at least part of his purse.

“They’re gonna take care of me.” Weidman explained. “They’re doing something for me. I’m not getting my full purse, I’ll put that out there. It’s tough, you show up, you do everything right and you don’t get it. But they are giving me the opportunity to fight again very soon to make me whole, so I can’t complain too much.”

Though disappointed not to receive his full money, Weidman also explained that he understood the UFC’s side of the equation as well.

He continued, “My show money is my win money. I have guaranteed money. That was my point. I showed up, you guys had that on the budget sheet to begin with, you guys had a great night, why do you guys keep that money and I don’t? That was my thought. Their thoughts were, ‘Listen, this happens on like 40% of the cards, and if we paid people to not fight?’ They just want to be consistent on what they do in those situations.”

Ultimately, it could be a lot worse for Weidman. Hopefully, whatever UFC paid him is enough to cover the extension of his camp, and he can earn his full purse at UFC 310 without being affected too negatively.

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