As the final presser for UFC 324 unfolded at T-Mobile Arena, the event took a humorous turn when Derrick Lewis, who faces Waldo Cortes-Acosta on the main card, shouted, “$324,000.” The heavyweight contender’s offhand remark, which had the room laughing and cheering, followed Dana White’s moment of confusion.

With its broadcast on Paramount+, UFC 324 marks a new chapter for the three-decade-old MMA promotion. But the kickoff has also presented Dana White and his team with a new problem – fighter bonuses – and, for now, White does not appear to have an answer.

Dana White caught off guard by bonus questions as UFC 324 opens

At the press conference, a reporter’s question appeared to leave White flustered. “Dana, you got some of the most exciting fighters in UFC history up here on the stage. Fighters who lead their divisions in bonuses. I know you said in this era things would be going up. What kind of bonuses is everyone fighting for on Saturday?” the reporter asked.

With Justin Gaethje, who headlines the event alongside Paddy Pimblett, ranking third all-time in Fight of the Night bonuses (nine), expectations were high regarding how much fighters could earn on the year’s opening card.

Yet, as his response showed, White did not have a figure. “Yeah. I don’t. I don’t have that number right now.” He glanced toward his team for help, but none came. When the reporter pressed him on whether he would have a number by Saturday, White replied, “Yeah. No, I don’t have it right now.”

His response was soon followed by Lewis’ joke. If the event is billed as UFC 324, then why not make the bonus total $324,000? Featherweight contender Jean Silva added his own take: “You tune up the bonus boss, and you give us more money. You see two autistic dudes really going at it if you pay us more.”

White’s comments come on the heels of a recent flap surrounding Gaethje’s remarks on payouts.

White remains under scrutiny over fighter payouts

Speaking with the media, the former interim champion disagreed with Daniel Cormier, who had predicted higher compensation. “Oh, man, to have 14 bonuses and not have it equal up to $1 million, it’s not right. It should be a lot more than that. I should’ve had opportunities to do smarter things with my money, but I haven’t. To this day, I hear Daniel Cormier saying everybody is going to get paid more on this card. I’m not getting paid one dollar more than if this deal hadn’t happened,” Gaethje said.

White later responded, saying Gaethje had been offered more money. But the Arizonian did not reply.

The UFC president has said fighters will be compensated with higher salaries following the promotion’s $7.7 billion deal with Paramount, adding that bonuses are also expected to rise. Though he did not provide specifics, White said, “We completely have it dialed in. We’ve got really smart kids, and they can get down within single digits on how close it would be to pay them like it was a pay-per-view.”