Eric Nicksick revealed he made a career-best payday for coaching Francis Ngannou during his boxing match against Tyson Fury.
On October 28, Ngannou silenced the doubters by officially fighting Fury in a ten-round boxing match. Not only did ‘The Predator’ secure a massive payday, he also knocked down the heavyweight boxing world champion and arguably won the fight, which was scored a split decision for ‘The Gypsy King.’
Ngannou reportedly earned $10 million for the unforgettable boxing match, but he could have ultimately acquired more or less. As a result, the former UFC heavyweight champion wasn’t the only person to benefit from his life-changing pursuit of opportunities outside of the Octagon.
During an interview with MMA Junkie, Ngannou’s coach, Eric Nicksick of Xtreme Couture, had this to say about what he was paid for the October 28 boxing match:
“It was the most money I’ve ever been paid by a fighter. It was unbelievable. It was more than I expected. I wasn’t expecting, and obviously, Francis [Ngannou] has always taken great care of me. It floored me. When I saw my Wells Fargo account that morning, it literally brought me to tears. That’s a true story, literally brought me to tears because he changed my life.”
Nicksick continued:
“Not only from a professional standpoint but a monetary standpoint. It allowed me a lot of financial freedom to be able to enjoy my coaching, enjoy being a dad and a husband. There’s a lot of things with Francis moving over to boxing and then the way he takes care of his team. He loves every single one of us, and he shows it. He takes care of us, and I couldn’t thank him enough.
Eric Nicksick says he was paid more for Francis Ngannou’s boxing match than two UFC title fights
Erick Nicksick was Francis Ngannou’s coach for his two UFC heavyweight title fights against Stipe Miocic and Ciryl Gane. Therefore, Nicksick has an intriguing perspective on the never-ending argument between MMA and boxing fans regarding fighter pay.
During the previously mentioned interview with MMA Junkie, Nicksick compared what he was paid for Ngannou’s boxing match to his UFC title fights:
“As his head coach, I got the two title fights with Stipe [Miocic] and [Ciryl] Gane. He paid me more for the Tyson Fury fight as basically his assistant behind Dewey [Cooper]. I was behind Dewey, and I got paid well more, way more than I did in the Gane and Stipe fight, and he was taking care of me on as well, percentage wise.So, yeah, if he wants to box, I’m all for it. All day long, brother.”
There’s no doubt that Francis Ngannou deserves endless respect and credit for his performance against Tyson Fury. With that said, Eric Nicksick received plenty of praise for how he’s helped evolve Ngannou and many other fighters, including UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland.
It’ll be intriguing to see how Nicksick’s work continues to benefit world-class fighters in the upcoming calendar year.
Watch Eric Nicksick’s entire interview with MMA Junkie below:
