Employers in any field have done an amazing job of making talking about one's income illegal, difficult, unsavoury, unwelcome, and what not - because it helps them pay far less than many (most?) people's work is worth. Videos like this are literally worth cash, so thanks for that, Gabriel!
@@BassForever44 it's not even that they're just underpaying, they're underpaying some people while overpaying others and they don't want the ones who are underpaid to find out and sue or give them shit.
@@camiloquemero my man. why don't you try coaching in some gym or personal training ?. that way atleast you doing something that you loves and definitely will have more time to train.
I hope your channel blows up mate. You're an exceptional representative for martial arts and kickboxing...and you have some crazy good hands for a kickboxer :)
Much appreciated and here's hoping. The channel has been doing well lately which is very exciting after a couple years of slow growth. Thanks for the support 🙏
man they deserve so much more money than that! I won a silly bar tough man tournament and got $250 a belt and some bar tab gift card. That's almost disrespectful that they don't get paid more
00:28 What I want to accomplish in this video 02:36 How Much Can You Make In Kickboxing? 09:54 What Fighters Get Paid 10:58 How Often Should You Fight?
@@lightnang very difficult. The market determines the value. Even at one of the heights of KB during the 80's, there weren't much interests. Probably more interests currently, yet low $$$.
@@SandaBoxing so we need a star athlete MMA has mcgregor and Jon Jones Boxing has mayweather, Mike tyson and Muhammad Ali What does kickboxing have? Badr hari? Masato? Yes they were stars mainly in Japan.. We need Someone bigger
Right on brother, love the insight from this. Before I got badly injured 12 years ago it was costing me money to fight. With the extra training, less time to work, and awful pay lol. I was taking whatever I could get, I literally got £75 for a fight once on an England vs Scotland Muay Thai show. I took it on 12 days notice and was the only English guy to win that night!
At least you got a good story from it. But it's brutal to hear about all the sacrifices that have to be made to compete. That's fine as an amateur but as a pro it's disappointing. Congratulations in the win though.
You are the most concise and clear headed fighter I've ever heard speaking, let alone explain and teach such complicated subjects. And, a champ too. I'm sure u know how lucky u are to still have ur wits. Great job sir
Thank you very much for letting us know so much about kick-boxing. In fact, I just accidentally came across to your channel, which talked about elementary KB skills. I found it so informative, interesting, and comprehensive, I just couldn't help digging deep into your channel to learn some more. Very good work, please keep up with your good efforts.
I was waiting for spencer cornelia to do a video on 'why you're favorite fighters are broke' but you guys actually seem a lot more level-headed and disciplined than musicians and other athletes. And how you do anything is how you do everything, so im sure being disciplined in training will translate somewhat to financially disciplined
They don’t make much after taxes and training expenses. An easy estimation of take-home pay is to subtract 60% from the overall fight purse. So getting 3k - 60% expenses = 1200 for the fighter.
The pay has not improved since the 80s and 90s. I made between $500 to $1000 say in the early 90s. I took Pedro Fernandez to K1 USA in 1998 and his pay was a miserally $1500.00. In fact, its worse today when you take in the fact that promoters also expect you to sell tickets, even though there is just so much free advertising today.
That's a bummer. You definitely can do better now. I'm not complaining about my purse. Everyone wants more, and of course I do to, but I'm making a good living right now. It would be disappointing if you aren't reaching the very top level. Then the pay won't be great.
Even with 10-20K a fight I don't understand how you make money with all of the expenses you have - paying your training camp, coaches, corner, travel, expensive food, etc. If all the fighters get sponsors then it makes more sense but I really don't think it's the case.
Promotions cover travel but yes aside from that it can be pricey. You want to find people who are there to help you early on and not there to take money. If you make it big then they will start taking a %.
It's a shame.. I feel the effort and training and strategies used in Muay Thai and Kickboxing requires so much more training than traditional boxing, but u guys get paid pennies compared to pro boxing :/ Yep u definitely gotta love the sport. I'm surprised that you haven't gotten more subs yet Gabriel, but keep at RUclips and your fights, I'm proud of u fighting out of Canada.
i made around 300 euros for my first amateur mma fight (it was a mixed card with pro fights and amateur. they also had boxing and kickboxing, so everyone got a little money)
By the way I think K-1 kickboxing would be a perfect fit for an Olympic sport amongst all striking sports besides boxing. Should be exciting and fast paced action in 3 round format. Way more exciting than taekwondo has become, and the different flavors of karate (point) or fullcontact (kyokushin) and somewhat safer than muay thai.
To many cuts and blood and ko’s for something like the olympics I don’t think it’s an image they try and portray. Plus olympics would also it amateur like boxing and there is no money in amateur sports
I always hoped I could compete in the Olympics but, like Daniel said, it's very unlikely to happen. Win a metal though and that would definitely help you with sponsorship.
Should have got in to more details. Like who pay for accommodations during fight week. Do the organization gives you groves or it comes out of your own purse. Also who pay for your gym fees throughout the year and how much it cost for 6wks camp?
Gabriel.. Can you make a video on why its never too late to start Martial arts.. I'm 24 . I know its a pretty common question but, I'd like to hear your perspective anyway.. Stay safe out there !
Yes. I was approached to switch to pro boxing after winning my first kickboxing world title but I was told it would take at least 15-0 before making any money. And that could take 3-5 years. A long time after already climbing the kickboxing ranks.
The top main-event stadium fighters in Thailand earn $15k a fight. We’re talking the #1 ranked fighter in each weight-class against a challenger for a belt. Also keep in mind, in Thailand the fight-gym gets 50% of that money automatically as they cover your living and food expenses along with your training. So if that’s the peak of pay in Thailand, imagine what the “average” stadium fighter gets :(
China is doing better now for sure. I still make less there than with Bellator though. But yes it would be over 10k for anyone who is a pretty good fighter.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial yes sir, i worked in hero legend before the fight card u r in, so i know the guys paycheck, wlf card came to Toronto, every chinese fighter have pay over 5k someone have 12k - 20 k
@@GabrielVargaOfficial That's actually quite good if someone relocates to Asia. If you make 20k a year you are basically having a comfortable middle upper class living. That's only two fights which is very little for kickboxing.
Still pretty decent. 700k in one fight night id take that anytime of day. if im not mistaken the dollar is $1usd and is approx 55, well you can guess the currency perhaps, yep decent i say.
Another great video. Insightful, interesting. In Western Europe it’s illegal to tell you that you aren’t allowed to talk about the pay. I don’t know about the other parts of the world. I was kind of expecting numbers about your fight earnings. It was kinda disappointing. lol great vid keep up!
I live and work in Germany and even tho it’s illegal to say, your employer will tell you “the pay is only between us”... it’s a very old trick. They can’t fire you, but they can say that they don’t want to extend your contract. Which will hurt you, especially if you love your job.
I am quite surprised that the income is so low. I come from a boxing background and when I was active (about 20 years ago) I knew a guy who made 3000$ per fight in the amateur division.. He was a great talent of course and became a professional world champion, but still. The average boxer in the division was still paid 600$ / fight. (and these are amateurs who officially wouldn't get paid at all, that was all handed out to them in cash)
It's too bad there's no massive money to be made in the sport. You can certainly do well if you are one of the top 25 in the world but not great like boxing or mma.
You mentioned not fighting on local cards if at all possible. Can you make a video or address the question how we get on bigger cards without the loca level experience
You should make a video speculating sponsorship pay, just to give an idea of what fighters make off their sponsors, probably more guessing but would still be helpful.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial heavier weight classes making more money isn't true across the board, depends on the sport. in boxing welterweight (147lb) is the most lucrative division as we see in pacquiao and mayweather (their fight was the biggest money fight in history), and the biggest money fights in combat sports history is in the lighter weight classes, not heavyweight. in mma we have mcgregor the richest most popular fighter in the sports history and he competed at featherweight (145lb) and lightweight (155lbs).
so how do you get into big leagues like UFC or ONE? i keep seeing others talk about entering local matches or tournaments that aren't exactly the type that's on big TV channels.
Hey, I was wondering, does anyone know if women make as much money as men do? I mean, male fighters are a lot more well-known so, unfortunately for female fighters, I think that probably means women make less money, even if they fight for the same belts and titles. I'm talking about top fighters like Jannet Todd and Stamp Fairtex (I pretty much only follow ONE FC), etc. Love your channel's content, keep the nice work!
I think some of the girls like Stamp make some good money. I'm not sure about Janet. I was chatting with her on Instagram recently but that didn't come up. I'll try and find out more about that and share with the channel soon.
So it's even worse than MMA? What're the associated costs like? I heard that even a $10k to show $10k to win for a new UFC fighter often isn't enough due to their medical bills, various coaches, gym fees, rent, food, ect.
That totally depends on your setup I guess. Medical bills such as physio can be expensive but often you can find practitioners who will sponsor fighter. I don't have a coach as my brother is my cornerman so if you can find someone to help you train but not take 5-20% of your purse that is great. My gym fees are non existent because all the gyms provide me with free training. I think I have 4-5 gyms in town that generously allow me to use the space whenever I need it. Rent and food is a normal expense so I'm not sure why people bring that into the equation. But yes. It's less than MMA.
I want to ask, what's a fighter's main source of income? Is it sponsors? Is it the gyms and the number of students? Because it sounds like in order to make a decent living, 40k to 60k a year, you have to be a champ or a high ranker, especially in the lower weight classes.
Lots of fighters work regular jobs also or do one on one classes and seminars. Like he said the striking world isn’t full of cash, it’s a shame but hey like he said we do this because we love it
Definitely not sponsors. Some people might luck out but that's not happening for most fighters. Maybe some teaching on the side. If you can fight 4+ times a year you should be doing okay with income. I'll have to make a video on the questions because it's pretty detailed.
Gabriel, I'm 25 this year, I've been training since I was 19 and this year because of Covid-19 I haven't being able to train... If I'm fully committed to the lifestyle, I can make it into the big stages? I'm afraid I might be to old...
Definitely not too old. Dont let your age put you off. If you feel fit and have the ability then go for it. I've known guys to still compete in their 50s. May not have been at professional world level but they were still out and fighting.
Wow it looks like I always like careers that pay shit: music, fighting, teaching 😂. Joking aside, it's depressing to hear what promoters pay these people. All I can say to aspiring pros and ammys is what i heard in the music world and luckily followed: "unless you sign with a major label, always keep your day job"
Yep. That's a smart idea. I went all in and was fortunate to be one of the few who made a good living for 5-6 years. But it's a risky move and a day job is a smart plan.
meanwhile the absolute top boxers are walking away with 50+ million a fight... Yes, thats only a couple boxers, for the huge fights. But come on, no one needs that much, even it out a bit more.
You know it 😀 Haha. No. Lerdsila is amazing. I fought him right and didn't play his game. It was a kickboxing fight so I kickboxed and didn't let him settle into a muay thai pace.
Hmmm. It's popular in Asia, Europe but I think boxing and MMA has dominated because the glamour and prefight drama that are created around fights. Kickboxing won't build until stars are created. GLORY didn't do a good job creating stars in North America. K-1 had stars but they were within Japan.
I just realised, the thumbnail looks like 20 baht notes! Yi sip. One of them gets you three or four eggs with black pepper on a stick, or a bag of chilli chicken livers, or two skewers of squid with some spicy sauce. In Thailand! (God I wish I was there right now).
@@GabrielVargaOfficial They absolutely look like 20 baht notes!! I think if you're doing a lot of training the key in Thailand is to make your own starch. I'd click on the rice cooker, and when you've trained all you need to do is spend 40 baht on a couple of things on the way home, and you've 825 kcals of fluffy, hot rice cooker rice to throw the curries over as soon as you arrive home. Way tastier and cheaper than buying little 5 baht bags. A Canadian winter after the tropics must be quite something. I'm not convinced that humans were made for anywhere on the planet north of Barcelona!
Isn't that crazy? 5-10 guys make a majority of the money. Good for them though. It would be nice to see a bit more evenness in the pay scale but it's hard to hold it against those guys. People pay so they make money.
Yes. It goes 1. boxing 2. MMA 3. kickboxing 4. muay thai That's why I don't take muay thai fights. They always want to offer me 50% of what I get for kickboxing.
It is crazy to know that for fighting on what it is considered to be the "bigger" shows how little do you earn in regards of the UFC for example. Also, here in my country the regular purse is from 40 to 100 dollars per fight, sometime less and at times promoters don't have the money or want to pay, so you have someone fighting pro at one show but at other as an ammy and things like this are normal here.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial yep…that is Uruguay for you, a place in which Pros fight as Amateurs (against debutants) because the promoters doesn't want to pay or what happened to me once, a guy asked me to fight as a Pro in MMA, but told me that he "couldn't pay me, not even trans money" because he spent all his money on something else…South America has some of the craziest stories to be honest
Probably because the average fan is more excited by KOs. I personally am happier to watch a higher skill level so I would pay more watch the lighter guys. I don't think I've purchased a heavyweight PPV...ever.
Glory is tiny, compared to K-1 and One Championship. Glory pays about $500-2000 if you're lucky.....and that's with them giving you a stack of tickets that you must sell or your pay goes down. They expect you to beg & hustle your family & friends at the gym.
Most Fighters don't talk about it is probably b/c they're embarrassed. I fight for fun, but the ones on my team who tried to do it as a career, failed and made $500-1000/fight...they usually quit after 5-8 fights....and this was MMA where there are much more opportunities than KB/MT. The cost of travelling to another State to fight, eats it all up almost. Not even including the cost of the training, gear, food, etc. and the wear & tear on your body; making it hard to work a real job, etc. Boxing don't pay much more neither as the pool of fighters is way deeper....a good Boxer is a dime a dozen & would be lucky to make $500 for his first few Pro fights and they better be exciting if he wants to keep moving up & make more $$$.
You're completely correct. If you get into the fight business with the only goal of making money you will give up before you get far. It's only in the past 2-3 years that pay has become a focus for me. Before that I fought because I wanted belts and liked the challenge. I made no money for 4 years in the amateur stage. No problem. First 5-6 pro fights probably broke even after training expenses. I started to save a little money when I was fighting for GLORY but all I cared about was the belt. Now that I have the fight experience and belts I can focus on making some money. That's the order it needs to happen.
That would be fantastic. It wasn't about the money for me until I won all the belts. Then it was sort of like, okay what's next? Well, I guess money should be a factor now.
But imagine if Conor MC Gregor come to kickboxing in welterweight or lightweight he would stil make milions because he would sell tickets.I think that is most important thing... how attractive are you, Will People pay to watch you
Buakaw Said to a young boy in he's taxi when he did the Thai TV show"chasing dream's"that if he was going to Chase he's dream to become a mt boxer that he should prepare for a carrier selling tshirts outside of lumpini stadion
@@BassForever44 it's also the reality, of all those tiny store's right outside the stadion which only sells Short's t-shirts and some with equipment and Caps/hats etc which is driven by mostly boys from 15 to 30year age i think all or most of them are still training and loves the sport but didn't make it as professional boxer's (there is no amateur league in Thailand)so he was just honest the boy's should have a backup plan if they don't want to sell tshirts
This is sad thad footballers who running after ball getting paid milions or hundred thousands per year, and fighters who put their health on the line, get fuck all
but kickboxing is Much better for stand up fighters you are APSOLUT right about beginers 《not k.o. guys》 eyciting fighters are better payed. Rico earns milions but per year
It's too bad because a lot of money was put into the organization. I have a feeling it wasn't put in the right places. And I'm not just talking about more to keep fighters there.
I wish more fighters would talk about this subject. Good video.
how do you always appear in the comment sections of all the other youtubers I watch 😂
@@benjaminhorowitz9927 they make similar content...
@@benjaminhorowitz9927 dude he's living legend
Always good video taste
Damn daddy your splits
So this is why many kickboxer switch to mma, it's a shame that they paid you only 3k after you beat one of the greatest muay thai fighter ever.
Yes. You might love kickboxing but if you don't win a belt it could be hard to make a living. Win some big belts and things are looking up.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial
Love him or hate him, Joe Shilling said the same thing. That’s why he was trying out MMA to make more $$$.
"I had beaten Lerdsila, which gave me a little bit of credibility."
Just a little?
Humble champ
nahh his level is already high, beating living legend only gave him 40% of exp
Employers in any field have done an amazing job of making talking about one's income illegal, difficult, unsavoury, unwelcome, and what not - because it helps them pay far less than many (most?) people's work is worth.
Videos like this are literally worth cash, so thanks for that, Gabriel!
Happy to share the information and I'm glad you found it worthwhile.
Exactly my thoughts. Whenever a cocksucking employer forbids you to talk about your salary, big red flag. More likely than not they're underpaying
@@BassForever44 it's not even that they're just underpaying, they're underpaying some people while overpaying others and they don't want the ones who are underpaid to find out and sue or give them shit.
And here in Argentina you train twice a day, six times a week, fight every weekend, and never get paid
Ouch. Is that because you live at the gym and they give you somewhere to live and food?
@Gabriel Varga painting, Uber, delivery, and stuff like that to gain what I need to be able to continue the chase. Not complaining, i love this sport
@@camiloquemero Keep grinding homie
@@camiloquemero my man. why don't you try coaching in some gym or personal training ?. that way atleast you doing something that you loves and definitely will have more time to train.
@@camiloquemero much love bro, keep grinding 💜💜
Come on RUclips algorithm give this channel some love.
Its Time!
🙏 😀 🙏
I hope your channel blows up mate. You're an exceptional representative for martial arts and kickboxing...and you have some crazy good hands for a kickboxer :)
Much appreciated and here's hoping. The channel has been doing well lately which is very exciting after a couple years of slow growth. Thanks for the support 🙏
man they deserve so much more money than that! I won a silly bar tough man tournament and got $250 a belt and some bar tab gift card. That's almost disrespectful that they don't get paid more
hahaha. legend.
GLORY will probably start charging fighters to fight for exposure. Shocking how incompetent fight promotions are.
00:28
What I want to accomplish in this video
02:36
How Much Can You Make In Kickboxing?
09:54
What Fighters Get Paid
10:58
How Often Should You Fight?
It's a shame that kickboxers aren't better paid, compared to other professional athletes.
because not many people watch KB nor Muay Thai.
You gotta go to Asia bro
@@SandaBoxing how do we change this?
@@lightnang very difficult. The market determines the value. Even at one of the heights of KB during the 80's, there weren't much interests. Probably more interests currently, yet low $$$.
@@SandaBoxing so we need a star athlete
MMA has mcgregor and Jon Jones
Boxing has mayweather, Mike tyson and Muhammad Ali
What does kickboxing have? Badr hari? Masato? Yes they were stars mainly in Japan..
We need Someone bigger
Right on brother, love the insight from this. Before I got badly injured 12 years ago it was costing me money to fight. With the extra training, less time to work, and awful pay lol. I was taking whatever I could get, I literally got £75 for a fight once on an England vs Scotland Muay Thai show. I took it on 12 days notice and was the only English guy to win that night!
At least you got a good story from it.
But it's brutal to hear about all the sacrifices that have to be made to compete.
That's fine as an amateur but as a pro it's disappointing.
Congratulations in the win though.
You are the most concise and clear headed fighter I've ever heard speaking, let alone explain and teach such complicated subjects. And, a champ too. I'm sure u know how lucky u are to still have ur wits. Great job sir
Thank you very much for letting us know so much about kick-boxing. In fact, I just accidentally came across to your channel, which talked about elementary KB skills. I found it so informative, interesting, and comprehensive, I just couldn't help digging deep into your channel to learn some more. Very good work, please keep up with your good efforts.
great video! i love kickboxing and mma but boxing is still the combat sport where you make the most money
Gabriel Varga the king of kickboxing
I was waiting for spencer cornelia to do a video on 'why you're favorite fighters are broke' but you guys actually seem a lot more level-headed and disciplined than musicians and other athletes. And how you do anything is how you do everything, so im sure being disciplined in training will translate somewhat to financially disciplined
They don’t make much after taxes and training expenses. An easy estimation of take-home pay is to subtract 60% from the overall fight purse. So getting 3k - 60% expenses = 1200 for the fighter.
Listen to Myles Jury. The UFC for most fighters is very similar.
Your content has improved on this page. You're doing a good job. Keep it up Varga
Thank you, and I will.
Very informative Gabriel, Thank You.
The pay has not improved since the 80s and 90s. I made between $500 to $1000 say in the early 90s. I took Pedro Fernandez to K1 USA in 1998 and his pay was a miserally $1500.00. In fact, its worse today when you take in the fact that promoters also expect you to sell tickets, even though there is just so much free advertising today.
That's a bummer.
You definitely can do better now. I'm not complaining about my purse.
Everyone wants more, and of course I do to, but I'm making a good living right now.
It would be disappointing if you aren't reaching the very top level. Then the pay won't be great.
You are one hell of a fighter and a class act Gab
Hey Gabs i really like your videos dude, always very informative and honest with no bs
Glad you like them!
Thank you for this. This was a much needed video.
Even with 10-20K a fight I don't understand how you make money with all of the expenses you have - paying your training camp, coaches, corner, travel, expensive food, etc. If all the fighters get sponsors then it makes more sense but I really don't think it's the case.
Promotions cover travel but yes aside from that it can be pricey. You want to find people who are there to help you early on and not there to take money. If you make it big then they will start taking a %.
When you say champs can make somewhere between 12-15k did you mean just to show? Or total including win bonus
That's not an exact number but in my experience that was the whole purse. More like 8k to show and 4-6k win bonus.
It's a shame.. I feel the effort and training and strategies used in Muay Thai and Kickboxing requires so much more training than traditional boxing, but u guys get paid pennies compared to pro boxing :/ Yep u definitely gotta love the sport. I'm surprised that you haven't gotten more subs yet Gabriel, but keep at RUclips and your fights, I'm proud of u fighting out of Canada.
Just wanted to say that I enjoy watching your videos and I hope you get more and more subscribers everyday! Thanks
I appreciate that and hope to see you back.
Your are the best this data is gold mi amigo
Thanks. I'm glad the content reviews are positive 😀
what about a "what makes Rodtang Jitmuangnon so good" video. that guy is a beast in MT
Oh boy. He's a little tank.
I'll have fun with that breakdown.
i made around 300 euros for my first amateur mma fight (it was a mixed card with pro fights and amateur. they also had boxing and kickboxing, so everyone got a little money)
By the way I think K-1 kickboxing would be a perfect fit for an Olympic sport amongst all striking sports besides boxing. Should be exciting and fast paced action in 3 round format. Way more exciting than taekwondo has become, and the different flavors of karate (point) or fullcontact (kyokushin) and somewhat safer than muay thai.
To many cuts and blood and ko’s for something like the olympics I don’t think it’s an image they try and portray. Plus olympics would also it amateur like boxing and there is no money in amateur sports
I always hoped I could compete in the Olympics but, like Daniel said, it's very unlikely to happen.
Win a metal though and that would definitely help you with sponsorship.
Should have got in to more details. Like who pay for accommodations during fight week. Do the organization gives you groves or it comes out of your own purse. Also who pay for your gym fees throughout the year and how much it cost for 6wks camp?
Those are most costs of being a kickboxer instead of purse which is what he is covering
great info by the way....thank you champ.
Gabriel.. Can you make a video on why its never too late to start Martial arts.. I'm 24 . I know its a pretty common question but, I'd like to hear your perspective anyway.. Stay safe out there !
For sure. That's a video I'd love to make.
I'll get on it.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial Awesoome! really looking forward to that one!
I started wrestling in HS, BJJ at 24, TKD at 27 and mma at 28 but had 3 fights cancelled due to covid 💀
@@THIS---GUY keep hustling, you going to kick ass soon my man.
@@rahulRRR19 Thanks brother. May you accomplish your goals and dreams
boxing is the best paid, but there's a lot of competition there it would be hard to get on the elite levels fast
Yes. I was approached to switch to pro boxing after winning my first kickboxing world title but I was told it would take at least 15-0 before making any money. And that could take 3-5 years. A long time after already climbing the kickboxing ranks.
Boxing and MMA is the best paid but I am loyal to my art (kickboxing and Mauy Thai) I'll never turn back now ❤️🤛
Can you do a video on how much muay Thai fighters earn?
😥 Even less.
I'll add it to my "to film" list.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial btw can you make a video on your favourite combos exc I'll love to add some of your moves to my arsenal
@@hmt-0764 I'll get to that one as soon as fight camp starts up.
The top main-event stadium fighters in Thailand earn $15k a fight. We’re talking the #1 ranked fighter in each weight-class against a challenger for a belt. Also keep in mind, in Thailand the fight-gym gets 50% of that money automatically as they cover your living and food expenses along with your training. So if that’s the peak of pay in Thailand, imagine what the “average” stadium fighter gets :(
@@fredred5037 I want to fight In Thailand but not for long...
If you want to make money dont go
Into kickboxing😂
It’s a stepping-stone into MMA.
@@fredred5037 unfortunately.....
Gabriel, do you mainly rely your income from fighting? or you do something else? and if you do, how do you manage to juggle those things?
It's mostly fighting. I do a little martial arts instruction as well.
very informative video, thanks for sharing, Sir.
China have a better pay for pro kickboxing now, kickboxing is very popular in China, also champ u fight in China, I believe is around 10k at least
China is doing better now for sure. I still make less there than with Bellator though. But yes it would be over 10k for anyone who is a pretty good fighter.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial yes sir, i worked in hero legend before the fight card u r in, so i know the guys paycheck, wlf card came to Toronto, every chinese fighter have pay over 5k someone have 12k - 20 k
@@GabrielVargaOfficial That's actually quite good if someone relocates to Asia. If you make 20k a year you are basically having a comfortable middle upper class living. That's only two fights which is very little for kickboxing.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial bellator has kind of killed of their kickboxing division though...
@@chrisgrudge6964 do you think it'd be good money for British fighters? (I'm one of them)
Still pretty decent. 700k in one fight night id take that anytime of day. if im not mistaken the dollar is $1usd and is approx 55, well you can guess the currency perhaps, yep decent i say.
Another great video. Insightful, interesting. In Western Europe it’s illegal to tell you that you aren’t allowed to talk about the pay. I don’t know about the other parts of the world. I was kind of expecting numbers about your fight earnings. It was kinda disappointing. lol great vid keep up!
I know. Contracts with GLORY, Bellator etc are not to be shared. Even UFC unless it's disclosed by the State is kept under wraps.
I live and work in Germany and even tho it’s illegal to say, your employer will tell you “the pay is only between us”... it’s a very old trick. They can’t fire you, but they can say that they don’t want to extend your contract. Which will hurt you, especially if you love your job.
I am quite surprised that the income is so low. I come from a boxing background and when I was active (about 20 years ago) I knew a guy who made 3000$ per fight in the amateur division.. He was a great talent of course and became a professional world champion, but still. The average boxer in the division was still paid 600$ / fight. (and these are amateurs who officially wouldn't get paid at all, that was all handed out to them in cash)
It's too bad there's no massive money to be made in the sport. You can certainly do well if you are one of the top 25 in the world but not great like boxing or mma.
very insightful, respect
Great content. Keep up the good work
Appreciate it!
You mentioned not fighting on local cards if at all possible. Can you make a video or address the question how we get on bigger cards without the loca level experience
he looks like the t-1000 terminator and is just as scary haha
You should make a video speculating sponsorship pay, just to give an idea of what fighters make off their sponsors, probably more guessing but would still be helpful.
I'll make it happen. I think I'm allowed to talk about all those numbers.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Please go to One championship!
so the moral of the story is, If you are a heavier weight, you have more potential.
More potential to make bigger money...for sure!
@@GabrielVargaOfficial heavier weight classes making more money isn't true across the board, depends on the sport. in boxing welterweight (147lb) is the most lucrative division as we see in pacquiao and mayweather (their fight was the biggest money fight in history), and the biggest money fights in combat sports history is in the lighter weight classes, not heavyweight. in mma we have mcgregor the richest most popular fighter in the sports history and he competed at featherweight (145lb) and lightweight (155lbs).
Just thank you!
so how do you get into big leagues like UFC or ONE? i keep seeing others talk about entering local matches or tournaments that aren't exactly the type that's on big TV channels.
*Gabriel, I just want to ask what mma shorts& boxing gloves do you recommended? please and thank you.*
Hmmm. Shorts is all about what style and fit you like.
For gloves my favourite brands are Leone, Hayabusa...I guess that's all I really use right now.
Hey, I was wondering, does anyone know if women make as much money as men do? I mean, male fighters are a lot more well-known so, unfortunately for female fighters, I think that probably means women make less money, even if they fight for the same belts and titles. I'm talking about top fighters like Jannet Todd and Stamp Fairtex (I pretty much only follow ONE FC), etc. Love your channel's content, keep the nice work!
I think some of the girls like Stamp make some good money.
I'm not sure about Janet. I was chatting with her on Instagram recently but that didn't come up.
I'll try and find out more about that and share with the channel soon.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial Wow, that's good news. If you could make that happen that'd be awesome, it would be interesting to know. Thank you so much! 😁💪🥊
So it's even worse than MMA? What're the associated costs like? I heard that even a $10k to show $10k to win for a new UFC fighter often isn't enough due to their medical bills, various coaches, gym fees, rent, food, ect.
That totally depends on your setup I guess.
Medical bills such as physio can be expensive but often you can find practitioners who will sponsor fighter. I don't have a coach as my brother is my cornerman so if you can find someone to help you train but not take 5-20% of your purse that is great. My gym fees are non existent because all the gyms provide me with free training. I think I have 4-5 gyms in town that generously allow me to use the space whenever I need it. Rent and food is a normal expense so I'm not sure why people bring that into the equation.
But yes. It's less than MMA.
Any plans to get onto ONE FC?
I'm chatting with them. We'll see....
👀
I want to ask, what's a fighter's main source of income? Is it sponsors? Is it the gyms and the number of students? Because it sounds like in order to make a decent living, 40k to 60k a year, you have to be a champ or a high ranker, especially in the lower weight classes.
Lots of fighters work regular jobs also or do one on one classes and seminars. Like he said the striking world isn’t full of cash, it’s a shame but hey like he said we do this because we love it
Definitely not sponsors. Some people might luck out but that's not happening for most fighters.
Maybe some teaching on the side. If you can fight 4+ times a year you should be doing okay with income.
I'll have to make a video on the questions because it's pretty detailed.
Antonio Plazibat 《who fights in GLORY》says that Overeem vs Harry boath got more than milion in 3rd superfight
This just reinforces to me how Glory is a joke of an organisation.
Yeah shame
Why are the tournaments gone nowadays?
Gabriel, I'm 25 this year, I've been training since I was 19 and this year because of Covid-19 I haven't being able to train...
If I'm fully committed to the lifestyle, I can make it into the big stages? I'm afraid I might be to old...
Definitely not too old. Dont let your age put you off. If you feel fit and have the ability then go for it. I've known guys to still compete in their 50s. May not have been at professional world level but they were still out and fighting.
Give it a try.. man
How many fights do you have? Or would you be starting with none.
Either way it's not too late.
Wow it looks like I always like careers that pay shit: music, fighting, teaching 😂. Joking aside, it's depressing to hear what promoters pay these people. All I can say to aspiring pros and ammys is what i heard in the music world and luckily followed: "unless you sign with a major label, always keep your day job"
Yep. That's a smart idea.
I went all in and was fortunate to be one of the few who made a good living for 5-6 years.
But it's a risky move and a day job is a smart plan.
Imagine being an aspiring author like me 🤣😂🤣😂🤣
great channel!
Glad you enjoy it!
Great Video
Thats criminal i use to think ufc underpaid there fighters
You really expect me to fight Petrosian?? xD jk, love the video!
How much dollars do you earn from kickboxing in your entire life?
meanwhile the absolute top boxers are walking away with 50+ million a fight... Yes, thats only a couple boxers, for the huge fights. But come on, no one needs that much, even it out a bit more.
Boxer get that much because Peale want to see them if kickboxer want to make more they have to grow the popularity of the sport and there own brand .
Cool guy !😎
So this is why Israel moved to MMA
For sure.
Hahahahaha
Honestly 60k a year is pretty good i wouldn't complain
The injuries though
I heard women earn way more money and much earlier one, like 4 digits for the first pro fights?
Hmmm. I haven't heard that before but it could be true. There are certainly less female competitors. Maybe that helps them got extra money early on.
WTF, this guy beat LERDZILLA ????? Damn. 2:55
You know it 😀
Haha. No. Lerdsila is amazing.
I fought him right and didn't play his game.
It was a kickboxing fight so I kickboxed and didn't let him settle into a muay thai pace.
Gabriel is going to give away 10k to the winner when he gets 20k subs!!!!!
Nice video🙏🌺
Thank you.
With all this being said, why do you think that pro kickboxing isn’t more popular?
Hmmm. It's popular in Asia, Europe but I think boxing and MMA has dominated because the glamour and prefight drama that are created around fights. Kickboxing won't build until stars are created.
GLORY didn't do a good job creating stars in North America. K-1 had stars but they were within Japan.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial Ok, so it's all marketing. You Pro Kickboxers definitely deserve that UFC/boxing marketing budget and paydays!
Do you plan to fight in MMA?
I'm getting my plans for the year underway right now. It may involve MMA with Bellator. For full kickboxing I'd probably end up with ONE.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial I'd love to see you fight in ONE😎😎💪🏽
I just realised, the thumbnail looks like 20 baht notes! Yi sip. One of them gets you three or four eggs with black pepper on a stick, or a bag of chilli chicken livers, or two skewers of squid with some spicy sauce. In Thailand! (God I wish I was there right now).
They are Canadian 20s.
Oh man. Food in Thailand was sooo good.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial They absolutely look like 20 baht notes!! I think if you're doing a lot of training the key in Thailand is to make your own starch. I'd click on the rice cooker, and when you've trained all you need to do is spend 40 baht on a couple of things on the way home, and you've 825 kcals of fluffy, hot rice cooker rice to throw the curries over as soon as you arrive home. Way tastier and cheaper than buying little 5 baht bags. A Canadian winter after the tropics must be quite something. I'm not convinced that humans were made for anywhere on the planet north of Barcelona!
Why did you choose kickboxing out of all the combat sports out there
I never considered making a career out of it so I just did what I loved most.
I also didn't know I had the skills to be a world champion.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial oh
So basically if you a full time kickboxer you're basically fricked if you receive a career ending injury
Yes. That's pretty much true. You need a backup way to make money.
When I've been injured I've had my children's martial arts program to focus on.
Lol mayweather makes 1 million once he steps out of the locker room and one more with every additional step he takes
Isn't that crazy? 5-10 guys make a majority of the money.
Good for them though. It would be nice to see a bit more evenness in the pay scale but it's hard to hold it against those guys. People pay so they make money.
Wow and I thought ufc fighters were underpaid, kickboxing pays shit
Yes. It goes
1. boxing
2. MMA
3. kickboxing
4. muay thai
That's why I don't take muay thai fights. They always want to offer me 50% of what I get for kickboxing.
It is crazy to know that for fighting on what it is considered to be the "bigger" shows how little do you earn in regards of the UFC for example.
Also, here in my country the regular purse is from 40 to 100 dollars per fight, sometime less and at times promoters don't have the money or want to pay, so you have someone fighting pro at one show but at other as an ammy and things like this are normal here.
$40-100??? Wow. That doesn't even cover 2 physio sessions over here.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial yep…that is Uruguay for you, a place in which Pros fight as Amateurs (against debutants) because the promoters doesn't want to pay or what happened to me once, a guy asked me to fight as a Pro in MMA, but told me that he "couldn't pay me, not even trans money" because he spent all his money on something else…South America has some of the craziest stories to be honest
dont forget taxes, managers fee and all that extra shit
why are heavier people payed more?
Probably because the average fan is more excited by KOs.
I personally am happier to watch a higher skill level so I would pay more watch the lighter guys.
I don't think I've purchased a heavyweight PPV...ever.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial i agree man, i find lighter guys to not only quicker but way more technical which i really enjoy
Because they eat more with the money they get
I naively thought it was because they take more injuries? But promoters don't give a damn about them so i don't really know
What has happened to glory?
Glory is tiny, compared to K-1 and One Championship. Glory pays about $500-2000 if you're lucky.....and that's with them giving you a stack of tickets that you must sell or your pay goes down. They expect you to beg & hustle your family & friends at the gym.
They still haven’t paid back their initial loan they took out in 2007 lol. What muppets. Crap organization.
Try Tennis or Golf if you want to be rich!
Tennis. That would have been a possibility for me.
I have family members down in the U.S who were ranked.
Maybe I got the tennis gene too.
Most Fighters don't talk about it is probably b/c they're embarrassed. I fight for fun, but the ones on my team who tried to do it as a career, failed and made $500-1000/fight...they usually quit after 5-8 fights....and this was MMA where there are much more opportunities than KB/MT. The cost of travelling to another State to fight, eats it all up almost. Not even including the cost of the training, gear, food, etc. and the wear & tear on your body; making it hard to work a real job, etc. Boxing don't pay much more neither as the pool of fighters is way deeper....a good Boxer is a dime a dozen & would be lucky to make $500 for his first few Pro fights and they better be exciting if he wants to keep moving up & make more $$$.
You're completely correct. If you get into the fight business with the only goal of making money you will give up before you get far.
It's only in the past 2-3 years that pay has become a focus for me.
Before that I fought because I wanted belts and liked the challenge. I made no money for 4 years in the amateur stage. No problem.
First 5-6 pro fights probably broke even after training expenses.
I started to save a little money when I was fighting for GLORY but all I cared about was the belt.
Now that I have the fight experience and belts I can focus on making some money. That's the order it needs to happen.
My dream is to make enough money through investments that I could fight for the love not for the $$
Great plan 🙏🏻
Yep, same for me. Good luck to you.
Almost in the same boat as u. I'm learning programming to "work" whenever i want and be able to train twice a day.
That would be fantastic. It wasn't about the money for me until I won all the belts. Then it was sort of like, okay what's next? Well, I guess money should be a factor now.
@@GabrielVargaOfficial do you have to pay out Management, trainers, sparring partners etc?
But imagine if Conor MC Gregor come to kickboxing in welterweight or lightweight he would stil make milions because he would sell tickets.I think that is most important thing... how attractive are you, Will People pay to watch you
20 doubloons
Buakaw Said to a young boy in he's taxi when he did the Thai TV show"chasing dream's"that if he was going to Chase he's dream to become a mt boxer that he should prepare for a carrier selling tshirts outside of lumpini stadion
Wow that's depressing
@@BassForever44 it's also the reality, of all those tiny store's right outside the stadion which only sells Short's t-shirts and some with equipment and Caps/hats etc which is driven by mostly boys from 15 to 30year age i think all or most of them are still training and loves the sport but didn't make it as professional boxer's (there is no amateur league in Thailand)so he was just honest the boy's should have a backup plan if they don't want to sell tshirts
This is sad thad footballers who running after ball getting paid milions or hundred thousands per year, and fighters who put their health on the line, get fuck all
ONE FC had a 1 million dollar tournament which Petrosyan won
Did you even watch the video??
but kickboxing is Much better for stand up fighters
you are APSOLUT right about beginers 《not k.o. guys》 eyciting fighters are better payed.
Rico earns milions but per year
Glory pays nothing. It honestly deserves to be buried in memory, which it will.
It's too bad because a lot of money was put into the organization.
I have a feeling it wasn't put in the right places. And I'm not just talking about more to keep fighters there.
Sixty grand a year just to train and fight a couple of times would be a blessing. Trumps boring ass nine to five job's.
or just do boxing and fight youtube chumps and live the dream...
Gabriel "I get paid monopoly money" Varga
At least he's doing what he want's I think you missed that part.
@@joeygoguen1525 "I missed the part where that's my problem"
@@AroundElvesWatchUrselves96 just pointing out he's living his dreams instead of posting spiteful comments.
@@joeygoguen1525 "Look at little Joey jr. Gonna cry?"
@@AroundElvesWatchUrselves96 Haters gonna hate.Have a good day sir watching people being more successful than you.