MMA veteran Josh Thomson held two stints with the UFC, and is most notable for handing Nate Diaz his lone defeat via stoppage. But after losing to Tony Ferguson in July 2015, he opted not to extend his UFC contract upon its expiration.
Thomson subsequently signed with Bellator in September 2015, and has incurred two wins under the company, so far. It is a decision, which he says was rooted to the one thing that his fellow fighters have been clamoring the most about these days: money.
“I didn’t leave just because of the Reebok deal,” Thomson said in an interview on BJPenn.com’s Rapid Fire. “I left because they (the UFC) made all main event fights five rounds, if I’m fighting in title fights or main events, those two extra rounds whether it’s in the UFC or Bellator are knocking years off of my life just to fight. It’s time for me to make money.”
Thomson feels the wear and tear that fighting had brought to his body was not compensated well enough while he was fighting in the UFC. Which is why when Bellator guaranteed a hefty sum, he immediately jumped ship.
“You’re training for five rounds, five rounds of Jiu-Jitsu, five rounds of wrestling, five rounds of sparring, five rounds of stand-up. You’re cutting your career down and you’re not getting paid any more than you were before.”
“That to me was the biggest part of my decision (to not re-sign with the UFC),” he continued. “You’re basically cutting my career down, cutting my career life expectancy in half. Sure maybe you get a backroom bonus, but it’s not as much as people think it is. It’s not a flat fee, I know guaranteed money when I see it.”
“When you talk to any professional athlete, what’s the most important part of the contract? Guaranteed money! When I talked to Bellator and saw their guaranteed money, I knew (the UFC) couldn’t touch it. When someone tells you they will take care of you, don’t believe them. Just believe what’s signed on the contract.”