Jake Paul and Anderson Silva will pocket multi-million paydays for their high-profile boxing clash.
The YouTube star faces the biggest test of his career when he takes on former UFC champion Silva at the Desert Diamond Arena in Phoenix tonight. Paul has fought five times as a professional fighter and his earning power has grown with each fight.
Paul has indicated that if the numbers being predicted regarding gate revenue and pay-per-view sales come to fruition, he could earn a career-high payday which will top the £2million he was guaranteed for his rematch with Tyron Woodley last December - although his final purse would have been much higher when his share of the pay-per-view revenue was added.
"I hope it does well," Paul said of tonight's fight. "I think it will, the numbers are all showing that. So yeah, this could definitely be my highest payday. I haven’t really focussed on that, even saying that is one of the first times I've even thought about it. Just because of how much the fight means and how focussed I am and how big the challenge is at hand. The payday is just the cherry on top for the opportunity at hand.”
Paul's final pay cheque could hit eight figures, particularly if the event sells 700,000 pay-per-views which Paul has predicted in the run-up to the clash. This would bring in a total revenue of around £45m in box office receipts alone, having already brought in the highest gate revenue for the Phoenix venue in history.
Meanwhile Silva could earn around $500,000 as a guaranteed purse, but this could raise much higher if pay-per-view sales and gate receipts reach expected targets and could earn him several million. His rival claimed in the build-up that he believes due to the calibre of the names involved that the fight could represent a career-high payday.
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“I think this could be the biggest payday of his career,” Paul told MMA Fighting. “Just because this is like my first big fight. As crazy as that sounds, all the other fights have been like, decent, but this is the first big, big fight, with another massive name who brings a ton of business to the table."
Silva quickly moved to dismiss the claims, insisting he earned more during his days as a UFC fighter. He said: "No, it's not true. don't like to talk about money because I'm not here for money. Thanks to god I have money to take care of my family. I'm not a rich guy but I try to live a good life and don't spend money on things that aren't important.
"I think fighters do need to paid good for putting their life in danger but more important for me now is to continue fighting. Nobody start in my generation continue to fight at the same level I fight. When I wake up everyday to train with my kids and spar with these younger guys, I try to continue respecting the sport that built my life and pass it on to new generations."
