Henry Cejudo’s last fight at UFC 323 might not have gone his way, as he suffered a unanimous decision loss against Payton Talbott. However, ‘Triple C’s retirement didn’t end on a sour note because it actually turned out surprisingly lucrative. The former two-division champion received a $50K bonus from Dana White for his barnburner fight, which came off more like a personal gesture than a standard fight-of-the-night award. On top of that, the UFC CEO went ahead and gave him his win money, too.

“UFC did just pay Henry Cejudo his show and win money. Thank you.” Cejudo’s manager, Ali Abdel Aziz, posted on X, thanking the promotion for the gesture.

For the unversed, the UFC generally operates on a show-and-win model for fighter contracts, with a few exceptions like UFC 311, where Islam Makhachev and Merab Dvalishvili got paid flat rates. But, under the show-and-win system, fighters receive a set amount just to compete, and if they manage to secure a victory, they earn the ‘win money,’ which usually equals the show purse. Moreover, the fighters also receive promotional bonuses and incentives like Venum gear and compliance pay.

In Cejudo’s case, he lost to Payton Talbott at UFC 323, but as a generous retirement gesture, the UFC still decided to pay him the win bonus along with his show money. Well, there’s no credible information on exactly how much the former two-division champ earned for this three-round slugfest, but it’s safe to assume it was a solid payout. Still, fans weren’t happy. Why? 

Once Ali Abdelaziz’s post started circulating online, fans began questioning why a former champion like Henry Cejudo wasn’t on a flat-rate deal. The flat-rate model is the complete opposite of the show-and-win structure, meaning fighters get paid their full contracted amount whether they win or lose.

For example, per MMA Mania, PFL paid Corey Anderson a flat rate of $800,000 for his fight against Denis Goltsov, still more than the show money most UFC champions receive. Even former UFC fighters like Matt Brown also advocated for this flat-rate model, and obviously, both systems have pros and cons.

So this just added to that long-running debate about pay in UFC, that even the elite veterans do not have financial security if they lose. The current structure still leaves many fighters feeling financially undervalued.

And the fans didn’t hold back once they realized Cejudo was still under a show-and-win contract rather than a flat salary.

Fans grill Dana White and Ali Abdelaziz

One fan used crying emojis to highlight Cejudo’s contract situation, writing, “So the how about 50 extra dana… means…. henry on a 50/50 contract 😭😭😭.”

The reaction summed up the frustration, but things didn’t stop there. Another fan jumped in and claimed Dana White uses managers like Ali Abdelaziz as a shield against antitrust lawsuits, calling it a “symbiotic relationship.”

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The fan wrote, “Because @AliAbdelaziz00 who calls Dana boss, does whatever the UFC wants and volunteered to assist the UFC by testifying against fighters in the antitrust lawsuit. In exchange for total subservience, the UFC tosses a few bones. A perfect symbiotic parasitic relationship.”

In the UFC’s antitrust lawsuit, Ali Abdelaziz, Michael Bisping, Donald Cerrone, and others supported the company in court. So the fan suggested that they operate under Dana White for a few bonuses and don’t actually care about other fighters. As per the user’s reaction, it’s safe to assume that they feel flat rates would’ve been the fairer model, so the user decided to roast both the UFC and Cejudo’s manager. But the backlash didn’t end there.

Another angry fan wrote, “The fact that Henry’s supposedly the greatest combat sport athlete and still on show/win formula tells me everything about the s—hole the UFC is and the s—hole manager you are.”

Again, Dana White and Ali Abdelaziz took heat for not paying Cejudo under a flat-rate system. Still, some fans were just happy that a legend like the former two-division champ received some well-deserved compensation.

“He deserve this 🙏🏻 legend,” one fan commented after seeing the news that the UFC paid him the win money. Following that, another interesting reaction popped up, “Imagine how much more money he would have if he didn’t retire for two years giving up two belts in the process.” And honestly, that’s a fair point.

Although Cejudo complained during his retirement that the company didn’t pay him fairly, if he had stayed active, who knows—he could’ve racked up some serious money defending the bantamweight belt a few more times.

That said, do you think the UFC should continue with the show-and-win model or switch to flat pay? Let us know in the comments section below.