Former UFC heavyweight standout Brendan Schaub believes Conor McGregor is the most underpaid fighter in the promotion’s 30+ year history.
McGregor is by far and away the biggest star that mixed martial arts has ever produced. The impact he’s had on the sport is immeasurable — though if you need some kind of measuring stick to truly understand, just take a look at the top 10 highest-grossing UFC pay-per-views of all time where you’ll find McGregor’s name featured in all, but two of them.
With that said, one could certainly argue that McGregor’s value to the UFC is far greater than what the promotion has paid him over the years. Speaking on his The Schaub Show podcast, the ex-fighter argued that McGregor has brought in millions of dollars for the UFC, not just through his appearances inside the Octagon, but by helping grow the business as a whole — something Schaub believes the Irishman has not been fully compensated for.
“Nobody’s more underpaid than Conor McGregor,” Schaub said. “Now, no one wants to hear this because you see his whiskey sales, you see him in that movie, you know, Road House, you see him in all this stuff, and he’s making all that money, and you’re like ‘No, he’s set, he’s a damn-near billionaire.’ I get that, but just from – it’s very black and white – from a numbers standpoint if you look at what Conor’s brought into the UFC money-wise… He’s the most underpaid athlete, probably of all time.”
“Now people say the argument is ‘Well, he wouldn’t be that big if he didn’t have the UFC,’” Schaub said. “Well, my argument would be the UFC wouldn’t be as big if they didn’t have Conor McGregor, so that’s why there has to be some sort of middle ground.”
Conor McGregor Has Made Millions Outside of the Octagon
Of course, McGregor is by no means hurting for money. He is currently estimated to have a net worth of roughly $200 million, though much of that comes from endeavors outside of the Octagon. In 2022, he famously sold his popular Proper No. 12 brand of Irish whiskey to Promixo Spirits for an estimated $600 million, of which more than $100 million went directly into McGregor’s bank account.
McGregor also picked up a reported $5.5 million for his feature film debut in Road House, making him the highest-paid first-time actor ever.
On top of that, ‘Mystic Mac’ has an extensive real estate portfolio and his pub, The Black Forge Inn in Dublin to ensure the money continues flowing in once his UFC career is officially put to bed.
Watch the full segment from The Schaub Show below:
