UFC fighters reach $375 million settlement with judge approval

A Nevada judge has tentatively approved a $375 million settlement to conclude the first of two antitrust lawsuits against the UFC.

Last month, UFC parent company TKO Group and the plaintiffs in Le v. Zuffa to settle class action lawsuit. On Tuesday, Judge Richard Franklin Boulware II approved the terms of the agreement, ending a decade-long lawsuit.

A final approval hearing will be held in the coming months, and the final payment for several hundred participating fighters will be calculated after legal fees are paid.

“Today’s decision is welcome news for both parties,” a UFC spokesperson said in a statement to ESPN. “We are pleased to be one step closer to bringing Law’s case to a close.”

Eric Kramer, the plaintiffs’ lead attorney, said they were “very pleased” with Boulware’s decision.

“It is a tremendous accomplishment that will bring great relief to hundreds of deserving MMA fighters,” Kramer said in a statement to MMA Fighting. “We honor our courageous plaintiffs who have fought for this outcome for ten years. We look forward to pursuing significant business changes and further damages in our second antitrust case against the UFC.”

In July, Boulware rejected the first proposed $335 million settlement agreement, saying the amount was too low because it combined two different cases. The $375 million agreed upon in September focused solely on Low v. Zova, which involved fighters from 2010 to 2017.

As settlement awaits, more than 150 combatants involved in the lawsuit have filed statements urging the amount be approved as quickly as possible. Many fighters cited financial difficulties and physical ailments in their statements.

“I face serious challenges in covering basic daily expenses for food, shelter, transportation, and in the basic life skills needed to perform the job,” said former interim UFC heavyweight champion Shane Carwin, who added that he suffers from CTE. “This will be money that will truly change my life and for other members of the class.”

The antitrust lawsuit dates back to 2014, when Zuffa was accused of violating antitrust laws by paying UFC fighters less than they were entitled to and harming other mixed martial arts promoters with these practices. The lawsuit alleged that the UFC gained an unfair advantage in the MMA industry through years of anticompetitive tactics and engaged “in a scheme to gain and maintain monopoly power in the market for the services of professional MMA fighters.”

The UFC has defended itself by saying it has invested in the sport and cited competing promotions that have emerged over the past three decades as evidence of a level playing field.

The other antitrust lawsuit, Johnson v. Zuffa, covering fighters from 2017 to the present, remains in court. This antitrust lawsuit seeks to make permanent changes to both the UFC’s contracts and the promotion’s business practices.