UFC Antitrust Lawsuit: Settlement, Payouts, and Active Cases

The UFC antitrust lawsuit is a set of class actions brought by professional mixed martial arts fighters against Zuffa, LLC, the company that operates the Ultimate Fighting Championship, accusing it of using monopoly-buyer power to hold fighter pay well below competitive levels. The original case, Cung Le v. Zuffa, was filed in December 2014 and settled for $375 million, with final court approval on February 6, 2025.¹ Three related cases covering fighters who competed from July 2017 onward are still moving through the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada.

What the Fighters Alleged

The lead plaintiffs sued under Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act, arguing that the UFC had illegally acquired and maintained monopsony power in the market for elite MMA fighter services. In plain terms, they said the UFC had become the only real buyer of their labor and used that leverage to underpay them.²

The complaint identified specific contract terms that allegedly locked fighters in. Long-term exclusive promotional agreements kept fighters from competing elsewhere. A “champion’s clause” let the UFC unilaterally extend a titleholder’s deal by twelve months. A right-to-match clause allowed the UFC to match any competing offer. An exclusive negotiation window of 30 to 90 days gave the UFC first crack at re-signing fighters before anyone else could talk to them.³

The fighters also alleged that the UFC bought out or forced out rival promotions capable of bidding for their services, including Pride Fighting Championships, World Extreme Cagefighting, Strikeforce, EliteXC, and the International Fight League. Promoters that survived were allegedly relegated to feeder-league status.⁴

The numbers at the center of the case were stark. Plaintiffs’ evidence showed UFC fighters received roughly 20% of event revenue for eleven consecutive years, compared with nearly 50% for athletes in unionized leagues like the NFL, MLB, and NBA.⁵ The UFC, meanwhile, held about 90% of the U.S. MMA promotions market and pulled in more than $1 billion in annual revenue.¹

Why the UFC Settled

U.S. District Judge Richard F. Boulware II ruled against the UFC at nearly every major pretrial juncture. He denied the motion to dismiss in October 2016 and denied the UFC’s first summary judgment motion in December 2018.¹

The turning point came on August 9, 2023, when Judge Boulware certified a “Bout Class” of more than 1,200 fighters who competed in UFC events held or broadcast in the United States between December 16, 2010, and June 30, 2017. He found that the UFC held market shares of 71% to 99% during the class period and used what he called “ruthless” and “brutal coercive tactics” to keep fighters under contract.⁶ The Ninth Circuit denied the UFC’s emergency appeal of the certification order on November 2, 2023.²

Judge Boulware did decline to certify a separate “Identity Class” that alleged the UFC had suppressed fighter licensing fees for likeness rights.⁷

On January 18, 2024, the judge denied the UFC’s second summary judgment motion and set a jury trial for April 2024. Estimated damages ran from $811 million to $1.6 billion, and federal antitrust law would have trebled any verdict, putting the UFC’s exposure as high as $4.8 billion.⁸²

The $375 Million Settlement

The parties first announced a $335 million deal in March 2024 that would have resolved both Le and a newer follow-on case, Johnson v. Zuffa. Judge Boulware rejected that agreement in July 2024, finding the amount too low to cover two distinct actions.⁹

A revised $375 million agreement followed in September 2024, this one resolving only the Le case and leaving Johnson to proceed on its own. The court granted preliminary approval in October 2024 and final approval on February 6, 2025, with a written order on March 3, 2025.¹⁰¹

Who Gets Paid, and How Much

The fund covers more than 1,100 fighters, with distributions tiered by each fighter’s level of participation during the class period:

35 fighters are expected to receive over $1 million each.
Roughly 100 fighters are expected to receive over $500,000.
More than 200 fighters are expected to receive over $250,000.
The majority fall between $50,000 and $250,000, with a minimum individual payout of $15,000.¹¹

As of April 2026, $237.4 million had been paid to 984 claimants across 44 countries, covering more than 90% of eligible fighters. Remaining delays involve ten fighters facing competing claims from spouses or tax authorities, estates of deceased fighters that lack a will, and seventeen fighters living in countries under U.S. sanctions that block fund transfers.¹²

Important limit: the Le settlement only covers fighters who competed in UFC events held or broadcast in the United States between December 16, 2010, and June 30, 2017. If you competed for the UFC starting July 1, 2017, or for a different promotion, your claims are in the separate cases described below, not this fund.

The Lawsuits Still Active

Three related cases are moving forward before Judge Boulware, and in June 2025 the court ordered that discovery in all three be consolidated to the extent it overlaps.¹³

Johnson v. Zuffa

Kajan Johnson and Clarence Dollaway v. Zuffa, LLC, filed June 23, 2021, brings the same antitrust theory forward to cover the post-June 2017 period. Where Le was about back pay, Johnson also seeks injunctive relief that would force the UFC to change how it does business.¹¹⁴

On February 25, 2026, the plaintiffs filed a motion for sanctions and default judgment, alleging that TKO Operating Company, Endeavor Group Holdings, and Zuffa had “destroyed years of critical evidence” and spent months “scheming to cover up their spoliation.” No ruling has been reported.¹

Cirkunovs v. Zuffa

Filed May 23, 2025, by retired fighter Misha Cirkunov, this case targets post-2017 UFC contracts that contain arbitration clauses or class-action waivers. It responds directly to an April 2025 defense move in Johnson, where Zuffa argued that many fighters had signed away their right to join a class. Cirkunovs asks the court to declare those provisions unenforceable, which could sweep hundreds of previously excluded fighters back into the litigation.¹⁵¹⁶ Zuffa’s motion to compel arbitration is pending; the court authorized limited discovery on the arbitration question, and the defendants have appealed that order.¹⁷

Davis v. Zuffa

Filed May 29, 2025, by Phil Davis, currently under contract with the Professional Fighters League, this case opens a new front. It is brought on behalf of fighters who competed for promotions other than the UFC after July 2017, on the theory that UFC conduct suppressed pay across the entire professional MMA industry. Among other remedies, it asks the court to let fighters end promotional contracts without penalty after one year. The defendants moved to dismiss in August 2025.¹⁸¹³

Who the Defendants Actually Are

The corporate ownership shifted during the litigation, which is why the named defendants have grown. Zuffa, LLC was the original operating entity and the sole defendant in Le. Endeavor acquired control of the UFC in 2016 and absorbed it fully during its 2021 IPO. In 2023, the UFC and WWE merged under a new public holding company, TKO Group Holdings, which is 51% owned by Endeavor.¹⁹ TKO has disclosed that the $375 million settlement will be paid in tax-deductible installments over an agreed period. Johnson, Cirkunovs, and Davis all name Zuffa, TKO, and Endeavor as defendants.²⁰

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