UFC 296 (on December 16, 2023) is a PPV card scheduled in Las Vegas headlined by two title fights. The main event is headlined by champion Leon Edwards defending against the brash Colby Covington. More to come on this card. The co-main event is a flyweight title fight between newly minted champion Alexandre Pantoja and the surging Brandon Royval. The card also includes UFC veterans like Stephen Thompson and Tony Ferguson, pitted against rising contenders like Shavkat Rakhmonov and Paddy “The Baddy” Pimblett (respectively).
Update: It was a thrilling night of fights with plenty of finishes and absolute bangers. The ladies showed out as Irene Aldana and Karol Rosa went to war in what was certainly a “Fight of the Year” candidate. The strikers went back and forth and both left the cage bloodied and battered – it was ultimately Aldana who took the unanimous decision. Shavkat lived up to the hype and submitted Stephen Thompson late in the second round. Incredible cardio carried Tony Ferguson through 3 rounds but he couldn’t beat the younger Paddy Pimblett who controlled the fight on the ground. In the co-main event, Alexandre Pantoja survived some fifth round adversity to take a unanimous decision over Brandon Royval – defending his belt for the first time since he took it from Brandon Moreno. Colby Covington couldn’t get anything going in his return from a two year layoff. He looked cautious as champion Leon Edwards picked him apart. Bonuses went to Rosa/Aldana, Josh Emmett, and Shamil Gaziev, and Ariane Lipski.
Assumptions:
Assuming main event and co-main event fighters are getting PPV Share
Assuming 600,000 PPV Views only for estimation purposes based on the drawing power of this card.
*Note that the official payouts have not been disclosed for this fight card in Las Vegas so the salaries listed are based on estimates of previous contracts, trends, and drawing power. Other assumptions are made like expected contract changes. All promotional compliance pay figures are based on the formula negotiated with Venum.
Total Payout for UFC 296: $6,214,000
Venum (Sponsorship) Fighter payout: $320,000
Performance Bonus money paid out: $250,000
UFC 296 Detailed Payouts
| Fighter | Opponent | Date | Event | Result | Base Salary | Win Bonus | PPV Buys | PPV Payout (est) | Performance Bonus | Sponsorship | Total | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leon Edwards | Colby Covington | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | 600,000 | $600,000 | $42,000 | $1,657,000 | ||
| Alexandre Pantoja | Brandon Royval | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $300,000 | $300,000 | 600,000 | $600,000 | $42,000 | $957,000 | ||
| Colby Covington | Leon Edwards | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $750,000 | $0 | $32,000 | $797,000 | ||||
| Stephen Thompson | Shavkat Rakhmonov | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $400,000 | $0 | $16,000 | $431,000 | ||||
| Cody Garbrandt | Brian Kelleher | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $250,000 | $250,000 | $50,000 | $11,000 | $326,000 | |||
| Paddy Pimblett | Tony Ferguson | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $150,000 | $150,000 | $4,500 | $169,500 | ||||
| Josh Emmett | Bryce Mitchell | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $100,000 | $100,000 | $50,000 | $11,000 | $176,000 | |||
| Bryce Mitchell | Josh Emmett | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $90,000 | $0 | $6,000 | $111,000 | ||||
| Tony Ferguson | Paddy Pimblett | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $250,000 | $0 | $21,000 | $286,000 | ||||
| Brandon Royval | Alexandre Pantoja | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $150,000 | $0 | $32,000 | $197,000 | ||||
| Shavkat Rakhmonov | Stephen Thompson | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $150,000 | $150,000 | $50,000 | $6,000 | $221,000 | |||
| Alonzo Menifield | Dustin Jacoby | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $90,000 | $90,000 | $11,000 | $116,000 | ||||
| Dustin Jacoby | Alonzo Menifield | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $90,000 | $0 | $6,000 | $111,000 | ||||
| Irene Aldana | Karol Rosa | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $72,000 | $72,000 | $50,000 | $11,000 | $148,000 | |||
| Karol Rosa | Irene Aldana | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $48,000 | $0 | $50,000 | $6,000 | $119,000 | |||
| Brian Kelleher | Cody Garbrandt | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $70,000 | $0 | $11,000 | $96,000 | ||||
| Casey O'Neill | Ariane Lipski | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $50,000 | $0 | $4,500 | $69,500 | ||||
| Ariane Lipski | Casey O'Neill | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $50,000 | $50,000 | $50,000 | $6,000 | $121,000 | |||
| Tagir Ulanbekov | Cody Durden | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $30,000 | $30,000 | $4,500 | $49,500 | ||||
| Cody Durden | Tagir Ulanbekov | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $50,000 | $0 | $6,000 | $71,000 | ||||
| Andre Fili | Lucas Almeida | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $90,000 | $90,000 | $50,000 | $16,000 | $171,000 | |||
| Lucas Almeida | Andre Fili | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $24,000 | $0 | $4,500 | $43,500 | ||||
| Martin Buday | Shamil Gaziev | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | L | $50,000 | $0 | $6,000 | $71,000 | ||||
| Shamil Gaziev | Martin Buday | 12/16/2023 | UFC 296 | W | $40,000 | $40,000 | $4,000 | $59,000 |
