Jake Paul, a Youtuber turned boxer, on Tuesday announced he has purchased a stake in Endeavour Group Holdings, the parent company of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) to protest the poor pay structure of fighters, among other things.
Paul, a long-time advocate of better pay and treatment of fighters, had called on Dana White, the President of UFC to increase athletes’ pay and give them good health care policy given the level of risk they take.
Jake Paul, 24, said he partnered Geoffrey Woo in his investment and called on other wealthy individuals, hedge funds, etc to join him in order to force UFC to make changes to its pay structure.
He tweeted, ‘I’ve invested in EDR (UFC) stock with my partner @geoffreywoo 2 focus on UFCs ESG standards relating to fighters’.
‘We believe EDR can drive long-term economic value by increasing UFC fighter pay & providing them healthcare.
‘Reaching out to @EngineNo_1 to partner on this ‘endeavour.”
The move was after Francis Ngannou, a Cameroonian UFC fighter and the heavyweight champion of the world, disclosed that he received $600,000 per fight as a champion despite the level of risk involved while the likes of Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and other boxers get paid $30 million and even more in case of Anthony Joshua.
Ngannou has since refused to extend his contract except certain adjustments are made to allow him the freedom to cross over to boxing.
Jake Paul, a new boxer with just three fights in 2021, earned $40 million, according to Forbes’s latest athletes’ earning report.
‘My partner Jake has lead the way in changing the business of combat sports by not just talking about it, but being about it — fighter pay, healthcare, & championing women’s sport,’ Woo said.
‘And today is our next step in our vision of revolutionizing the industry.
‘UFC has faced a rising chorus of criticism for the exploitation of its athletes — the [love] of [the] biz.
‘The ratio of revenue going to athletes vs. owners & leagues is well below industry standard.
‘This disparity hurts long-term shareholder value & this is not going to magically change.
‘Jake is the archetype of the future, where individual transcends the machine.
‘This is happening across all sectors — media, entertainment, & tech start-ups where dynamic, innovative individuals & creators are bargaining toe-to-toe w the owners, the institutions, and the academy.
‘We believe the best way to accelerate this inevitable revolution is to lead it from within the UFC as co-owners & impact investors.
‘We will use our investment stake to rally fans, athletes, fellow shareholders, and management to do the right thing.’