When Sean O'Malley took on Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276, the bout ended in a no-contest after Munhoz suffered a fight-ending eye injury courtesy of an errant eye poke from 'Sugar'. This reportedly had a knock-on effect on O'Malley's earnings, with the American only taking home $106,000.
This wasn't a good payday for 'Sugar' and was much lower than his recent outings in the octagon. O'Malley took home over $250,000 against both Raulian Paiva and Kris Moutinho, earning bonuses from the contests. The 27-year-old's base salary was $100,000 against Pedro Munhoz and Raulian Paiva.
Watch O'Malley's latest UFC outing here:
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Sean O'Malley's biggest UFC payday came against Kris Moutinho at UFC 264: Poirier vs. McGregor 3. 'Sugar' won via third-round TKO after putting on a dominant display against a tough opponent. O'Malley took home $261,000 after the contest, which is his biggest payday since joining the UFC in 2018.
The American will likely beat his record in his next outing against Petr Yan at UFC 280: Oliveira vs. Makhachev. If 'Sugar' beats the number one ranked bantamweight, he would almost certainly be awarded a bonus.
Despite his earnings not being record-breaking, O'Malley has managed to make himself a household name and will likely earn larger amounts in the future given his popularity continues to grow.
How much did Sean O'Malley make on his UFC debut?
'Sugar' had to start small like everyone else in the MMA world and only made $23,500 when taking on Terrion Ware in his UFC debut, according to MMA Salaries.
O'Malley won his UFC debut via unanimous decision and had a base salary of just $10,000. The American didn't earn a bonus, most likely due to winning on the scorecards instead of stopping his opponent.
Since joining the UFC in 2017, Sean O'Malley has only lost once in the octagon but has failed to beat a ranked opponent. O'Malley lost against Marlon Vera at UFC 252: Miocic vs. Cormier 3 and suffered a no-contest against Pedro Munhoz due to an eye injury.