Justin Gaethje’s title-winning night came with an enormous financial reward, as the UFC added $825,000 in bonus money to his biggest career moment. His stunning upset over Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250 earned him the undisputed lightweight championship along with two separate post-fight bonuses.
Before the event, UFC CEO Dana White revealed that UFC Freedom 250 would feature the largest post-fight bonus payouts in company history. Each Performance of the Night winner was set to receive $425,000, while both fighters in the Fight of the Night would take home $400,000 apiece.
At Sunday’s post-fight press conference, White confirmed the recipients. Gaethje and Ciryl Gane — who stopped Alex Pereira to capture the interim heavyweight title — claimed the two Performance of the Night awards. The main event also secured Fight of the Night honors, allowing Gaethje to cash in twice, while Topuria picked up the other $400,000 bonus.
It was the third time Gaethje has collected both Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night for the same bout. He previously pulled off that double bonus in his UFC debut against Michael Johnson and again in his interim title victory over Tony Ferguson. With that, Gaethje now averages more than one bonus per Octagon appearance.
The temporary boost represented at least a 400% jump from the UFC’s standard bonus structure.
The promotion had already raised its regular post-fight bonuses from $50,000 to $100,000 at the beginning of the Paramount+ era. It also rolled out a separate $25,000 reward for fighters who finish their opponents, provided they do not also win Fight of the Night or Performance of the Night. White said the five other fighters who scored knockout victories on Sunday would each receive those additional $25,000 payouts.
The increased bonuses for UFC Freedom 250 came from contributions from World Liberty Financial and Crypto.com.
UFC 300 held the previous record for largest post-fight bonuses. For one night, the UFC awarded $300,000 performance bonuses to celebrate the milestone card.
