Felice Herrig is among the female fighters who make a killing on OnlyFans.
The UFC veteran recently retired from MMA after a submission loss to Karolina Kowalkiewicz in June. Before entering her last fight inside the Octagon, Herrig had another battle to overcome: making money in her long two-year layoff.
Herrig’s Not Struggling To Get Paid With OnlyFans
Not having any fights lined up, Herrig sat without a UFC paycheck between September 2020 and May 2022. How did Herrig pay the bills in that time? OnlyFans, the subscription based platform in which fans pay to see exclusive content from creators. That’s what kept the lights on during Herrig’s knee injury.
“It’s very unfortunate to do anything out of desperation, and I feel like that’s what a lot of fighters would do for so long,” Herrig said on The Fighter vs. The Writer. “That’s why you do see fighters coming back from an injury [too soon].
“I probably would have come back a lot sooner from my injury if it wasn’t for OnlyFans, because I would have had to. I probably wouldn’t have been ready, and I was at least ready for this fight. Now with OnlyFans, I get paid weekly and I’m not struggling to get paid, and I can take care of my body the way a professional athlete needs to take care of their body.”
Herrig Makes ‘Ridiculous Money’ On OnlyFans
Herrig isn’t the first fighter to open an OnlyFans account… and with the bank she’s making, she won’t be the last.
“I make ridiculous money on OnlyFans,” Herrig added. “Then again, it’s because it’s how hard I’ve worked to build a name and a brand and image, but it’s also nice because it allowed me to work on the recovery that I needed to do. Getting massages like twice a week. I haven’t talked about this extensively.
“OnlyFans made it where I’m not desperate to fight again. I actually make more money from that than I ever made in fighting — and I make good money fighting. But when you break it down to the fact that you only get paid when you fight, it does make things stressful on you when you’re not getting paid to sit on the sidelines, when you’re not being helped out.”
Herrig Isn’t Done Fighting Just Yet
Speaking of making some good money, ‘Lil Bulldog’ just pen to paper as she signed a contract with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC). The gloves will stay off for the recently retired Herrig as she makes her move to the ring.
“I don’t feel like my career’s over by any means,” Herrig said. “I don’t feel like, ‘Oh my gosh, the opportunities are going to dry up.’ I feel like I’ve made great connections throughout the sport, throughout the industry. I have a lot of people in the sport that I love and that love me.
“I have things to look forward to. It’s like nature. Nature doesn’t try to grow, it just grows. A flower doesn’t try to bloom, it just blooms. Sometimes patience and stillness are where growth come from and where opportunities come from.”
