Sean O'Malley collected a $3 million base salary for a single fight in 2024. Aiemann Zahabi's highest reported earning in his entire UFC career was $85,000. Both men shared the same card at UFC Freedom 250 and O'Malley defeated Zahabi via knockout.
The bout paired two fighters whose financial profiles could not be more different, and the numbers behind each tell a story about how wealth is built, or slowly accumulated, inside the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Sean O'Malley's Net Worth
O'Malley, born October 24, 1994, in Helena, Montana, turned professional in the bantamweight division and reached the UFC's main roster by December 2017, earning $22,500 for his debut. Within seven years, his total UFC career earnings exceeded $10 million, drawn from base salaries, win bonuses, performance bonuses, and pay-per-view revenue shares. However, multiple sources, including Celebrity Net Worth, place his current net worth at approximately $4 million. One projection from Punified suggests his net worth could reach between $8 million and $12 million by 2026, driven by real estate holdings in Arizona and diversified business ventures.
But there was also a brief pause in his career, when O'Malley tested positive for a banned substance and served a suspension that covered 2018 to 2020. He returned at UFC 248 in March 2020, defeating José Alberto Quiñónez by first-round TKO, and did not slow down afterward.
His first seven-figure purse came against Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276. By UFC 292 in August 2023, when he stopped Aljamain Sterling to claim the bantamweight title, O'Malley earned $1.182 million. A title defense against Marlon Vera at UFC 299 brought in $2.31 million. The Merab Dvalishvili rematch at UFC 306, which cost O'Malley his belt in September 2024, carried a $3 million base salary. His most recent outing, a win over Song Yadong at UFC 324 in January 2026, generated an estimated $1.021 million.
Beyond the octagon, O'Malley holds endorsement agreements with Crypto.com, YoungLA, HappyDad, Ryse, Sanabul, Venum, and MyBookieMMA, and operates a supplement line called Doing Well. His Instagram following stands at 4.7 million, and his YouTube channel has crossed one million subscribers. He co-hosts 'The Timbo Sugar Show' podcast. Each of those platforms compounds his commercial value independent of his fight results.
How Aiemann Zahabi's Net Worth Compares
Zahabi's financial biography reads differently at every data point.
The 38-year-old fighter began training mixed martial arts at age 16 and spent more than two decades working through regional promotions, including Prestige FC, Hybrid Combat, and RMMA, before establishing a consistent UFC presence. He debuted in the UFC in 2017 against Reginaldo Vieira, earning $12,000 as his base salary with a matching $12,000 win bonus. His highest documented single-fight earning, $85,000, came at UFC Fight Night 246 in 2024 against Pedro Munhoz. At UFC 315 in 2025, a bout against Jose Aldo paid him $75,000 base with a $75,000 win bonus.
Zahabi's estimated net worth stands at approximately $500,000, according to media reports, which cited his guaranteed UFC earnings and sponsorship income.
His brother Firas Zahabi, the longtime head coach at Tristar Gym in Montreal and the man credited with developing former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre (GSP), serves as his primary trainer and corner man, including at UFC Freedom 250.
'The 16-year-old me knew I would make it. The 22-year-old me jumped and took the chance to go pro. The 30-year-old me stumbled, but then the 35-year-old me found his stride, and the 38-year-old me is going to plant his flag in the UFC,' Zahabi told UFC.com ahead of the event.
UFC Freedom 250 Payouts
Bonus payouts at the event are structured to be unusually large. World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a cryptocurrency firm co-founded in 2024 by Donald Trump and his sons, is serving as a presenting partner and contributing $250,000 in bonuses, with Performance of the Night awards set at $425,000 each, partially paid in USD1 stablecoin. Crypto.com, which already sponsors O'Malley individually, is adding a $1 million CRO bonus to the pool, bringing total available fighter bonuses to $1.65 million.
The promotion signed a seven-year, $7.7 billion broadcast deal with Paramount+, following which White promised ongoing fighter pay raises tied to business performance. UFC fighters currently receive an estimated 13% to 18% of total promotion revenue, compared to 50% in the NFL and NBA. Performance of the Night and Fight of the Night base bonuses were doubled to $100,000, and a new $25,000 Finish Bonus was introduced.
