"Fighters need to grow a pair" - Luke Rockhold slams UFC's "mafioso tactic" of using managers to supress fighter pay negotiations, says bonuses should be $500k

Luke Rockhold recently weighed in on the burning issue of UFC fighter pay. The former UFC middleweight champion believes fighters need to be more courageous in order to ensure adequate pay for themselves.

According to Rockhold, the UFC uses a few influential managers with a lot of fighters under their banner to stop those fighters from speaking up against the company. He recently told CBS Sports' Shakiel Mahjouri:

"I think fighters need to grow a pair... Fighters just don't grow a pair and you got managers that are in the pocket of the UFC that govern a massive umbrella of fighters. The UFC uses these two or three managers, we all know who they are, who have lots of key players in the game and those fighters under their banner will never speak up against the UFC. And that's the UFC's monopoly, their mafioso tactic."

Rockhold also believes that an increase in UFC bonuses could significantly increase public attention towards the sport. According to the former UFC champion, fighters should ideally be earning 500k bonuses considering the growth rate of the UFC. The 37-year-old further said:

"Imagine if the bonuses were a hundred grand, imagine how much more attention that would get from the public than fifty grand. Fifty g's like, 'Shut the f*** up, dude.' Realistically, those bonues should grow with the company and we should be getting half a million dollar bonuses."

Watch Rockhold's interview with CBS Sports below:

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Luke Rockhold claims UFC bonus structure is tracking backwards

Luke Rockhold will return to the octagon after a three-year hiatus against Paulo Costa at UFC 278 next weekend. The Californian has been voicing his concerns about the UFC's pay structure leading up to his octagon return.

Rockhold recently suggested an upgrade to the $50,000 UFC bonus structure as it hasn't changed in a decade. The former champion claims it is actually "tracking backwards", noting that UFC 129 had bonuses above $100,000.

Rockhold urged that the UFC bonus amount should be raised to $200,000. The 37-year-old recently told MMA Fighting's Damon Martin:

"Remember when they were doing $100,000 bonuses when Jake Shields fought Georges St-Pierre? Now we’re still stuck on $50,000 bonuses. I mean how many billions have we gone up in valuation since that fight — and we’re still tracking backwards and they’re still f****** us on pay. People need to shut the f*** up, ‘Oh, bonus $50,000!’ It’s becoming a thing. Let’s get $200,000 — $200G’s, motherf*****. That’s what you want to hear. The company needs to be reworked a little bit.”

Watch Luke Rockhold's interview with MMA Fighting below: