Chad Mendes is finally set to make his BKFC debut and is apparently getting paid quite a bit of money for his services.
Mendes hasn’t fought since 2018 at UFC 232 and he later retired in the summer of 2019. ‘Money’ recently announced his intention to return and signed with BKFC where he will face Joshuah Alvarez in a 155-pound bout on Feb. 19 at BKFC: Knucklemania 2.
For Mendes, he isn’t sure whether he will fight sans gloves or not, but is eager to try, he also if he doesn’t like it that will be his only fight in BKFC.
“It’s one of those things that’s gonna either be a lot of fun, or I’m gonna hate it,” Mendes told MMA Junkie.
Although he isn’t sure if he will like it, Chad Mendes says he is getting paid quite well for his bout. He revealed he’s getting more than what Francis Ngannou got for his UFC 270 heavyweight title defense against Ciryl Gane which was $600,000.
“I’ll put it this way: I just saw what the UFC heavyweight champion of the world just got paid, and it’s gonna be more than that,” Mendes said. “It’s pretty crazy. I feel blessed for sure.”
Part of how Chad Mendes is making his money is through sponsorships. He says sponsors have been paying him a lot of money, which is something he couldn’t do in the UFC.
“Man, it’s very profitable,” Mendes said of fighting for BKFC. “I’m getting paid well for the fight, and I’m doubling that with the sponsors alone. It’s crazy. That was such a big moneymaker for us in the UFC (before the exclusive Reebok deal). Obviously not everybody, but people who knew what they were doing and could promote and actually get out there and do what they needed to do to get those, it was great.
“It’s a great way to make a big income without having to do much, just getting logos on shorts, helping these companies that I already work with,” Mendes said. “I’ve worked with a lot of companies in the outdoor industry for the last six to eight years, and it’s just expanding our relationship and getting something new. Instead of just social media stuff, now we’ve got social media, a fight platform, and some cool marketing on shorts. I think it’s just a win-win for everybody. It’s exciting, the ability to do what we were able to do in this fight, for sure.”
