Nate Diaz aimed at Dwayne ‘The Rock Johnson in the lead-up to the final bout on his UFC contract earlier this month, criticizing the actor’s recently revealed footwear agreement with the UFC.
During an ESPN interview before UFC 278, Diaz held up one of Johnson’s Project Rock sneakers in front of the camera and exclaimed, “These shoes fucking stink.” “Behold these shoes. They forced me to wear this filth. “Crap these shoes,”
Diaz’s remarks were omitted from the original broadcast, but after being posted anonymously on Twitter, the clip became viral. At the time, it was the lone instance of a UFC fighter speaking out against the organization’s newest sponsor, whose money is unlikely to enrich the sportsmen participating in a physically demanding sport.
Late in August, the UFC announced a multi-year relationship with Project Rock, a collaboration between Johnson and Under Armour to manufacture co-branded footwear that will be distributed to fighters as part of their official gear for matches.
During fight-week events, training, and their walk to the octagon, all UFC competitors and corner teams are required to wear Project Rock footwear.
The collaboration was formalized during UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Tiuvasa, which took place on September 3, 2022.
Johnson stated in a UFC news release, “The men and women warriors of UFC compete in their famous Octagon with pride, purpose, passion, and MANA.” “Legacy is a very important word to me, and Project Rock is delighted to provide training gear to all UFC competitors who aspire to develop their enduring legacy in UFC and beyond.
This month, Project Rock launched a new ad campaign in which Dwayne Johnson referred to fighters as the “hardest workers in the room” and other UFC participants praised the actor’s dedication to the sport.
Even though Johnson may appear to have the respect of some of the organization’s athletes, UFC fighters will not benefit from his lucrative contract. According to many fighter reps who had athletes competing at UFC 279 and, because of the sensitivity of the matter, chose to remain anonymous, none of their athletes were paid extra to wear or promote Project Rock sneakers.
The Project Rock contract appears to be included in the UFC’s Promotional Guideline Compliance (PDC) scheme, in which competitors have compensated a set sum on fight week for adhering to the organization’s outfitting regulations and necessary promotional tasks.
The amount varies according to the number of fights an athlete has had with the UFC or whether they are the champion or title challenger for a certain event. The highest reward for UFC 279 was $21,000, while the lowest was only $4,000. (these payments are separate from the fee they earn for the actual fights).
The contracted pay structure does not change with the inclusion of new UFC sponsorships, including the UFC’s lucrative relationships with Venum and Crypto.com: if a fighter earned $4,000 from the PDC program before the Project Rock deal, they will earn the same amount. However, neither UFC nor Under Armour would elaborate on the terms of the agreement.
A media spokeswoman for Under Armour told, “We do not release this level of data on any of our collaborations.” However, we are happy to work with Dwayne Johnson and UFC to provide UFC fighters with UA’s performance footwear solutions.
Notably, the UFC has been able to maintain a stranglehold over its roster for a long time because its fighters are independent contractors with no union or association to collectively bargain for their rights.
In contrast to the great majority of sports leagues and organizations, in which athletes receive between 47% and 50% of the sport’s revenue, the UFC has historically compensated its fighters between 16% and 19% of revenues.
In 2019, the company reported $900 million in earnings, but only $160 million was distributed to around 600 combatants. This is in contrast to the NFL, where players receive two-thirds of the revenue from jersey sales.
Moody’s, an American provider of financial services, estimates that the UFC’s revenues in 2021 exceeded $1 billion, with similarly high projections for 2022. Despite the UFC’s record-breaking income, fighter compensation remains pitiful.
During a recent marketing campaign, Johnson remarked that the “values and basis of Project Rock… are so linked with the values and foundation of UFC and the fighters.” Given that the UFC was founded on the backs of exploitative labor, Johnson may not want to be compared to the organization.
Other fighters have urged Johnson, whose business has many unions for professional actors, to advocate for a more favorable contract for the athletes he claims to respect. It is unknown how much input Johnson had in the UFC deal.
Last week, UFC lightweight Terrance McKinney tweeted, “Hey brother @TheRock, if you’re a fan of what we do, make the arrangement advantageous for the ones modeling your shoe.” “I realize it’s neither your fault nor your concern to do this to us, but show us the love you think you’re capable of. Join our cause and lend us your support.”
