Matt Brown addresses UFC pay issue, argues athletes must bear responsibility: "If anybody is to blame for fighter pay, it's the fighters"

Matt Brown recently weighed in on the issue of fighter pay, and how much athletes under the UFC banner earn. He suggested that fighters themselves play a role in inhibiting a potential increase in pay. Brown indicated that most fighters are apprehensive of opposing the UFC.

Long deemed the world's premier MMA organization, the UFC has faced considerable criticism for allegedly underpaying its athletes. UFC CEO Dana White has strongly refuted the allegations and staunchly defended the promotion's fighter pay standards.

Brown (24-19 MMA) last competed at UFC Charlotte in May 2023, defeating Court McGee via first-round KO in a welterweight bout. A veteran of 30 UFC fights and a part of the promotion since 2008, Brown retired from mixed martial arts earlier this year.

Speaking to MMA Fighting's Damon Martin, Matt Brown recently asserted that he likes the UFC, has no hate toward them and has always been happy with how they've treated him. Nevertheless, Brown opined that if he thought fighting the organization over fighter pay would secure him better pay, he'd surely do it.

The UFC is fighting lawsuits, which allege the organization's monopolization of MMA and utilization of that control to underpay its athletes. Brown explained that though fighters may not want to publicly defend the UFC fighter pay standards, most of them do so because they fear that speaking against the organization would further diminish their individual pay. The 43-year-old stated:

"The one thing we can't forget is, you know, we talk about the NFL, MLB, all these other sports, they have the unions. If anybody is to blame for fighter pay, it's the fighters. And I'm one of them, you know, at least formerly. Like, I never fought against the UFC about my pay. And you've seen I'm sure on Instagram, Twitter, or different interviews, where the fighters stick up for the UFC."

Watch Matt Brown's assessment below:

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Matt Brown's remarks about UFC fighter pay, MMA retirement

Matt Brown suffered a razor-thin split decision loss against Bryan Barberena in March 2022. The defeat deprived him of a win bonus. He bagged $105k in show money and a $50k 'Fight of the Night' bonus.

On The MMA Hour, Brown later vocalized his disapproval of the UFC's pay structure. He underlined that fighters should receive a fixed pay for a given matchup, rather than losing around half of their pay in a defeat. He said:

"In a perfect world, we all get a flat pay."

Furthermore, in May 2024, Matt Brown announced his retirement from professional MMA competition. In a subsequent conversation with MMA Junkie, 'The Immortal' pointed out that the UFC had offered him a fight against Max Griffin a few months back.

Brown's lack of excitement over receiving the offer led him to realize that it was time to hang up the gloves. He noted that he's been "flipping houses and running a gym now," adding that his fighting career was adversely affecting his other endeavors.