Georges St-Pierre skeptical of what killing PPV could mean for UFC fighters
'It could be good for the UFC as a promoter, terrible for the fighters," St-Pierre told Covers.
The UFC and Paramount on Monday announced a massive seven-year, $7.7 billion broadcast deal that begins in 2026. It gives Paramount exclusive rights to the UFC's 43 annual events, including 13 "marquee" numbered events, which will be available to anyone with a Paramount+ subscription, effectively ending the pay-per-view model that's been integral to the UFC's business since its inception in 1993.
While the change has been viewed as a positive for fans who no longer have to pay $79.99 for a UFC pay-per-view, there's still no clarity on what it means for fighters, especially champions and select big names who've been used to receiving a cut of pay-per-view sales as part their contracts.
During his UFC welterweight championship reign from 2008 to 2013, St-Pierre largely carried the promotion on his back as its top draw, with UFC president Dana White in 2011 declaring him "by far the biggest pay-per-view star in mixed martial arts." Speaking from experience, St-Pierre simply wonders how top fighters, who otherwise would've earned pay-per-view points, will be able to do business with the UFC moving forward.
"When I was competing, I was able to have a great argument to negotiate on my contract,' St-Pierre said. 'I could tell the UFC, 'Hey, if you want me to do all the promotion, I want to become a partner. I want a piece of the pie to negotiate a part of the pay-per-view revenue. Because if I'm doing all the promotion, I'm helping you, but you need to help me. You need to make me a partner.' So it might be a bad thing for the fighters in a way that they have less leverage. ...
'That's what I think. I think it's going to take off some leverage for the big names to have an argument to negotiate more money.'
Fellow UFC Hall of Famer Chris Weidman predicts there will be "bigger guaranteed payouts" for UFC champions." Whether that ultimately happens remains to be seen and even then, fighters might not know if it truly offsets what they could've earned through direct cuts of pay-per-view sales.
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