Tag: TKO

Mark Shapiro confirms WWE’s use of AI, ‘Nick Khan & Triple H are using AI for storylines’

Posted on by Josh Nason

After our Dave Meltzer reported last October about a new hire brought into usher WWE’s growing use of AI in creative, TKO president Mark Shapiro confirmed the news in Monday’s company town hall meeting.

The latest news comes courtesy of Post Wrestling who obtained audio from the town hall. In their reporting, they gave the following quote from Shapiro who said using AI in WWE is “a major priority” for both efficiency and productivity.

“Nick Khan and Triple H are using AI for storylines with the WWE,” Shapiro said. “What’s resonating? What superstars are resonating? In what pockets of the country are they resonating? That helps us with, obviously, our content, our editorial, our creative, our mapping, our touring, and of course, maximizing revenue and getting our product out to the fans most in need of it.”

It’s unknown specifically how they are using it or with what partner. Meta appears the likely company due to their existing partnership with the UFC, but that is unconfirmed.

TKO chief financial officer Andrew Schleimer also spoke at the meeting and seemed to contradict Shapiro’s comments, saying they have only run “tests and pilots” and are in the early days.

From Post:

“He cited the use of AI for data and analytics on WWE and UFC consumers, as well as minor uses to enhance broadcasts.”

Update on TKO having ‘complete control’ of WWE creative | Exclusive

Posted on by Ian Carey

An update is available regarding TKO having “complete control” of WWE creative.

Earlier this week, comments made by TKO president and COO Mark Shapiro to a University of Alabama class were spread online, with Shapiro stating that TKO is in full control of WWE creative.

Shapiro’s comments were made prior to WrestleMania 42, and Dave Meltzer addressed the situation in this week’s edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Meltzer noted that while TKO executives do have final say over WWE creative, they almost never use it. However, when they did at WrestleMania 42, it was said to have come at the most inopportune time.

Meltzer wrote:

“It was noted to us that in the end, Emanuel and Shapiro do have the final say in creative, but they almost never use it. It was said that in this situation, they used it at the most inopportune time. There was a ton of chaos regarding those on the wrestling side who didn’t want the McAfee and Jelly Roll involvement in a world title match they had been slowly building for months and how the celebrities took the focus away.”

Meltzer also wrote that one person stated they saw conflict between TKO and WWE coming a year in advance.

“One person noted seeing the TKO Executives vs. WWE creative team battle coming for a year and said there was a lot of internal jockeying going on and that it was encouraged by Ari Emanuel and Shapiro.”

“It was noted to us that everyone acknowledges that at the end of the day, they have complete control, but they rarely use it and the complaint this year was that when they use it it’s at the worst time.”

The full edition of today’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter is available here for subscribers.

The Rock’s 2025 WWE royalties, travel expenses, TKO meeting attendance released in SEC statement

Posted on by Josh Nason

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was the only TKO Board member to not attend at least 75% of their meetings in 2025.

That news came via TKO’s annual proxy report filed with the SEC that also featured his 2025 compensation and status for his $30 million award of stock.

The report read that during TKO’s 2025 fiscal year, “our Board met five times” and that “each of our incumbent directors attended at least 75% of the meetings of the Board”…”with the exception of Mr. Johnson, who was unable to attend several board meetings due to prior business commitments.”

Johnson took in $900,000 in royalties for 2025 as part of a potentially decade-long merchandising/independent contractor agreement he signed upon joining the Board in January 2024.

He also received $600,000 in reimbursements for “certain travel expenses associated with delivering services under the Johnson Services Agreement.” That’s assumed to be for his appearances at the January 6 Raw on Netflix premiere, the following night on WWE NXT, and Elimination Chamber.

Johnson is also now fully vested for the $30 million in Class A stock he was scheduled to earn as part of the aforementioned arrangement.

His Seven Bucks Productions company also earned less than $120,000 “to provide production services for a potential non-scripted project on customary terms.”

The statement also had the 2025 compensation earned by several key TKO officers like WWE president Nick Khan.

TKO exec felt Vince McMahon wasn’t necessary post-WWE & UFC merger, contradicts SEC statement

Posted on by Josh Nason

Newly released testimony from a deposition in the WWE shareholders lawsuit has revealed that TKO president Mark Shapiro didn’t feel that keeping Vince McMahon around as part of the UFC/WWE merger was necessary “especially with all the baggage.”

The issue is that contradicts statements made in filings with the SEC that illustrated why it was felt McMahon needed to earn the compensation package and role he received to be part of the deal.

First reported by Post Wrestling’s Brandon Thurston, Shapiro was asked in his deposition if he personally didn’t view McMahon “being in the executive chair role as a necessary condition for the future success of the combined company.”

Shapiro answered, “Correct, especially with all the baggage.”

He was asked if McMahon remaining on board as TKO executive chairman was a goal of McMahon’s and not of what would become TKO leadership.

“Wasn’t a goal of ours, no, no, it was not,” he answered.

With the September 2023 merger of UFC and WWE that created TKO, McMahon received his lifetime role as TKO executive chairman, Board nomination rights, and veto power over certain transactions in addition to six extra percentage points of the combined company, worth roughly $1 billion in value.

The testimony also showed McMahon wanted to initially be TKO CEO, but that did not happen.

The lawsuit claims that McMahon’s drive to merge WWE with UFC was predetermined while other better offers were on the table because he wanted a role within it. He stepped down from his TKO position when the Janel Grant lawsuit first came to light in January 2024, but remains the company’s largest single person stockholder.

In an interview on CNBC that famously featured Emanuel next to a mustachioed McMahon, Emanuel joked he would have bodyslammed the WWE head if he didn’t come along for the ride. McMahon was asked if he would have walked away from WWE if that were the terms of any deal to which said he would have.

From Thurston’s report:

“The (SEC) filing further stated that McMahon “had not, and was not, requesting or proposing such rights.” According to WWE’s narrative, guaranteeing McMahon’s continued role was key to Endeavor agreeing to raise WWE’s split of the combined company from 43% to 49%.”

TKO compensation for Nick Khan, Ari Emanuel & Mark Shapiro revealed in SEC statement

Posted on by Josh Nason

TKO’s annual proxy statement was released on Thursday with the 2025 compensation for key executives revealed.

WWE president Nick Khan brought home $24.3 million for 2025 based on $2 million of base salary, $11 million in stock awards and more than $10 million in bonuses.

Khan also has taken on the role of Zuffa Boxing promoter, an effort TKO has partnered with Sela, a Saudi Arabian entertainment conglomerate owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF). $3.7 million of that bonus was attributed to those efforts.

TKO president Mark Shapiro, someone who appears frequently at major events and is a public face for the company, earned $42.6 million for the year.

TKO CEO Ari Emanuel, credited with bringing in The Rock for last February’s infamous WWE Elimination Chamber appearance in addition to Pat McAfee’s inclusion in the Cody Rhodes/Randy Orton WrestleMania 42 angle, earned $67.4 million.

Vince McMahon is still listed as the biggest individual Class A stockholder with 6,442,325 shares, worth roughly $1.2 billion in current day value, but does not draw any TKO salary.

WWE touts business success of WrestleMania 42

Posted on by Joseph Currier

TKO has issued its annual press release touting the business success of WWE WrestleMania weekend.

Though down from recent heights, TKO says WrestleMania 42 was still among the highest-grossing events in company history. A gate figure was not provided, but the press release claims an attendance of 106,072 across the two nights. That’s down from the attendance number of 124,693 that WWE self-reported for WrestleMania 41 last year.

Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas hosted both WrestleMania 41 and 42. Returning to the same city so soon is likely one of the reasons for the year-over-year attendance drop, with high ticket prices also playing a factor. WWE President Nick Khan, when asked about there being a downtick in business metrics, said the decreases are small and pointed to how WWE has focused on building for the future over the past year.

In the press release, TKO said WrestleMania 42 had record or near-record performances in sponsorship, merchandise, and digital metrics:

  • WrestleMania 42 featured a record 32 marketing partners, including Snickers, 2K, Riyadh Season, Ram, DoorDash, Wingstop, Wheatley American Vodka, Minute Maid, The General Insurance, PepsiCo’s MUG Root Beer and Chumba Casino.
  • At WWE World, a five-day interactive fan experience in partnership with Fanatics, paid experience sales reached all-time highs. WWE World also featured a lounge for attendees who signed up for Club WWE, the recently announced Gold membership experience for fans.
  • Additionally, WrestleMania 42 set a new digital record, generating more than 1.3 billion views across all social platforms – up 18 percent from the record set at WrestleMania 41.

This was the first time WrestleMania aired on the ESPN app (in the United States). The first hour of each night was also simulcast on television. Full viewership is not available, but the press release highlighted the success of those TV simulcasts:

  • WrestleMania Saturday was the most-viewed telecast of the year on ESPN2, while WrestleMania Sunday was the most-viewed telecast of the entire weekend on ESPN.

WrestleMania won’t be back in the United States until at least 2028, with Saudi Arabia set to host WrestleMania 43 next year.

TKO exec on WWE brand strategy: ‘You’re going to win some folks over & chase some folks away’

Posted on by Josh Nason

In a clip shared Monday from a college appearance last week, TKO head Mark Shapiro made some headlines with comments about WWE’s use of celebrities, a now infamous quote about “creative control” and an admission that their strategy might chase soem fans away.

During an appearance at the University of Alabama (heard below), Shapiro was asked about whether TKO has creative control over decisions like bringing in celebrities like Pat McAfee, Jelly Roll and iShowSpeed into the WWE world amid online complaints that WWE is more focused on moments and money making than anything else.

Shapiro said, “It has complete control. We’re responsible: good or bad, fact or fiction.”

While the immediate reaction has been that TKO is instructing Paul Levesque in what to do to with creative, it’s unclear if that is what Shapiro was trying to say or if “it” was more in the vein of traditional corporate synergy on decision-making vs. no input.

Shapiro did chalk criticism up to the fact that TKO is a public company now and that before Vince McMahon went public with WWE, “they didn’t put out financial results” and “no one knew it was successful,” noting that the brand with strong with a legion of fans but that was all people knew.

“Now, everything’s kind of out there,” he said, putting over WWE’s growth in every area and crediting their media strategy of Netflix, ESPN, USA and The CW.

He then said about stars, “I don’t think that part is true, but if it was, good” before talking about how The Rock is the biggest star on the planet. It’s unclear from the five minute clip what he was referring to.

He did say that, “Having Hollywood tie-ins and celebrities….that’s not new. It’s juston a larger stage,” mentioning the names above plus Mark Wahlberg and Tyrese Haliburton.

He acknowledged that “you can make some enemies really quickly” when content is spread across multiple platforms.

“We’re spending a lot more money to market the brand and the content. When you do that, you’re going to win some folks over and chase some folks away,” he said, illustrating how it’s not just WWE and citing how he read a story about New York Yankees fans would have to spend $1000 this season over ten digital platforms if they wanted to watch every game.

2023 text messages reveal Triple H’s concern about Vince McMahon’s WWE involvement

Posted on by Josh Nason

More unredacted documents from the ongoing WWE shareholders lawsuit revealed some concerns from Paul “Triple H” Levesque over his WWE creative role as relates to Vince McMahon’s return back in 2023 in addition to Levesque’s belief that Nick Khan saved his job.

First reported by Brandon Thurston for Post Wrestling on Tuesday, more text messages sent via WhatsApp were disclosed last week as exhibits for the ongoing lawsuit in which shareholders are disputing the process in which WWE was merged with UFC by Endeavor to create TKO, saying it was unfairly steered toward Endeavor despite other bids.

The messages began on September 11, 2023 — the night before the merger became official. These are all from Levesque to WWE president Nick Khan, a person who Levesque confides in frequently as a friend and power player inside the Endeavor/TKO structure.

Levesque wrote to Khan, “How’s it going so far ? Man, I’m wound tight today …. DDay tomorrow, expecting the worst” to which Khan replied twice but later deleted the messages, a trend throughout the disclosed exchanges. Khan said in legal filings that he doesn’t remember what he said.

Later that same day in which post-merger layoffs were being planned, Levesque texted Khan, relaying a message about McMahon reaching out wanting to discuss talent releases:

“Vkm. Btw I need to meet with all of U tomorrow re talent releases which coincides with all corporate releases Thx” with Levesque asking Khan to speak if he had time.

At the time of the merger, McMahon was the executive chairman of the TKO Board.

Two hours later, Levesque texted Khan again, “While I’m SURE you like to be done with this shit for today ….. Please let me know if you speak to AE” in which AE is assumed to be Endeavor head Ari Emanuel. Khan replied three hours later saying that he would. Levesque asked Khan if he was ok to which Khan replied “Yes sir! How you ?”

Levesque then said “Good anxious for tomorrow and beyond ……”

It’s unclear if Levesque and Khan spoke separately outside these texts.

**********

On the day the merger was made official (September 12, 2023), Levesque messaged Khan again at 6:58 AM:

“Nick , just wanted to take a moment before all the craziness today to say THANK YOU !!!!! Thank you for getting us here … if it wasn’t for you , I would have been gone a long time ago. I appreciate you and all you have done and gone thru …. And I appreciate our friendship… It means the world to me
Thank you and Congratulations”

Khan then replied, “You are my guy. You got me here. I want us to do this for 20 years and call it a day. I appreciate and admire you.”

Levesque then appeared to relay a message from McMahon:

“Just fyi

Morning! VKM looking to set an in person meeting for today at 4pm with you, Bruce and Ed regarding Talent Policies”

Khan replied something, but later deleted it. Whatever it was, Levesque replied, “Done.”

**********

Fast forward to Saturday, December 9, 2023, when Levesque texted Khan the following at 8:17 PM: “Was just told by security that VKM is coming to Cleveland TV Monday. What’s that about ??????”

Khan replied three times, later deleting all of them. Levesque replied “Is he in nyc yet …… When is their meeting?” Khan then replied again, but deleted it.

Some sort of talk between Levesque, Emanuel and possibly Khan appeared to take place — one Levesque was “disappointed” with.

From Sunday: ” the more I think about it the more I’m kinda disappointed in that Ari convo…… Seems like we are in the same place , “I’m gonna tell him to stay out of it or else” that’s way different than “I’m telling him he’s done ….. it’s over” Kicking the can down the road”

That appears to imply Emanuel was going to speak with McMahon about staying out of WWE creative due to concerns Levesque had. After another deleted Khan reply, Levesque asked, “What do u think about me hitting Shapiro to get his take and let him push or better direct to Ari?” followed by more deleted Khan replies. Shapiro is Mark Shapiro, the head of TKO.

The conversation kept going an hour later.

From Levesque: “Between you and I, It feels like they are both backtracking on the “he’s out” narrative. It’s back to the “well if he wants to go to the show now and then” and “if he gives notes and wants to have a 30min meeting now and then, ok”

That was followed by “He just sent an email re script for Ari” to which Khan said “Seems off. Lemme call him.” and later “They know already. No need to send.”

Later that night, Levesque intimated to Khan that McMahon and CM Punk were going to be on the same plane and questioned if that was going to be an issue:

“So he’s on the AM plane ….. I just remembered punk is scheduled to be on it as well. You think that’s an issue ?”

McMahon resigned from his post on January 26, 2024, amid sexual misconduct allegations from Janel Grant in a still ongoing civil lawsuit.

Wrestling Weekly: Bigger prices should mean better booking

Posted on by Victor Sosa

Les Thatcher is on the road this week at the Squared Circle Expo, but that did not stop he and Victor Sosa from getting together on a new Wrestling Weekly.

The guys talk the road to WrestleMania, all the happenings in AEW, and a few stories from the territories regarding Ricky Morton and the late great Dennis Condrey.

Thanks for listening and have a great weekend~!

Click here to listen (sub needed)

Ronda Rousey says AEW appearance was a ‘little bit of a f*** you’ to TKO

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Ronda Rousey’s AEW debut at Revolution was more than just supporting her friend Marina Shafir in her first pay-per-view match.

In a new YouTube vlog, Rousey gave a behind-the-scenes glimpse of her preparation for Revolution and expressed pride in how Shafir has successfully transitioned from MMA to pro wrestling.

“Marina is my best friend in the whole wide world and we grew up doing judo together as little kids. We both quit judo and started doing MMA and then we both quit MMA and started doing pro wrestling,” Rousey said. “She’s absolutely crushing it and I’m so proud of her. I’m so happy that everybody’s finally starting to take notice of how incredibly special she is.”

Rousey also detailed how AEW kept her presence backstage a secret before she showed up at the PPV.

“I was brought into the arena in a very unique — I thought this was going to be much more chill like whatever kind of day, but they’re acting like it’s freaking Royal Rumble super secret whatever,” she said. “But they had me jump into a wheelchair and throw a tarp over me and wheel me in here.”

Rousey compared the AEW experience to WWE and said her being at Revolution was a “little bit of a f*ck you” to WWE’s parent company TKO Group. The UFC is also under TKO’s umbrella, and Rousey had been in negotiations to make her MMA return with UFC before those talks fell apart. She is instead partnering with MVP Promotions and Netflix for her upcoming bout against Gina Carano.

“I mean, it’s a little bit weird, but also familiar, but also it’s like AEW, so it’s nice. It’s a little bit more laidback. But actually, this is my first, I think, full-on AEW show because I only did Ring of Honor before,” Rousey said. “Like, I think I’ve been at the shows, but never really performing them. And Ring of Honor was kind of like a pre-taped, that was a smaller crowd. So, I’ve never been to an AEW pay-per-view, so I don’t really know what to expect so much, but I’m thinking a less restrictive, more adult version of WWE, which sounds like a good time.

“Those are all very good descriptions, I felt. So, yeah. And it’s kind of a cool little bit of a, like little bit of a ‘f*ck you’ to the TKO group, which is kind of funny because WWE is on Netflix, but I kind of figured it’d be easier to ask for forgiveness instead of permission on this one. Like, I’m promoting your show. It’s fine. We didn’t advertise it. It’s not like we boosted the ratings of it, so it should be fine.”

Rousey made her WWE in-ring debut in 2018 and had two separate stints with the company lasting through 2023. Following her exit, Rousey has openly criticized WWE and TKO. 

In her first MMA fight in nearly a decade, Rousey will face Carano live on Netflix on May 16. Her AEW appearance is not expected to lead to anything more at least in the short term, with there being no further plans for Rousey at the moment.

Tony Khan made $6.9 billion bid for WWE during 2023 sales process

Posted on by Josh Nason

In a “what if?” moment in pro wrestling if there ever was one, new reporting out Thursday revealed that AEW head Tony Khan put in a bid for WWE during the company’s 2023 sales process.

That news was first reported by Brandon Thurston for Post Wrestling, courtesy of documents via the ongoing WWE shareholder lawsuit in which the process that saw Endeavor ultimately win out is being questioned.

The recently unredacted court filings originally from November 2023 show that along with the already known interested suitors TKO, Liberty Media and KKR, a company called Base 10. While Khan wasn’t specifically mentioned, the documents read that it’s “the owner of All Elite Wrestling, a professional wrestling promotion that plainly would enjoy significant synergies with WWE.”

Base 10 is a separate entity from Beatnik Investments, LLC, that is also owned by members of the Khan family. It was incorporated in 2014.

According to Thurston’s math, the offer listed in the documents was the lowest of the four, working out to $6.9 billion. By comparison, Endeavor led the pack at $8.5 billion, followed by Liberty Media ($8.5 to $8.9 billion) and KKR ($8 billion to $8.7 billion).

Aside from the dollar values, the key difference was Endeavor’s offer was an all-stock deal where investors just got their shares converted into TKO stock as opposed to the other three offers that were all cash.

Thurston also noted that the non-AEW affiliated bidders got access to a data room “where they had access to nonpublic information about WWE — a standard practice at that stage of a major M&A process.” He stated there’s no information supporting Base 10 got that same opportunity, perhaps due to its lower bid, Khan’s ownership of AEW, or a combination of those factors.

TKO exec says ESPN Unlimited price point is ‘somewhat prohibitive’ for WWE fans

Posted on by Josh Nason

TKO head Mark Shapiro is very excited about the day when ESPN Unlimited is fully authenticated for subscribers of all major cable & streaming TV providers, giving them free access to WWE premium live events.

Shapiro spoke Monday at the annual Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference where he was asked about the ESPN/WWE relationship following their PLE shift last September and how it might impact both reach and popularity.

He said “it definitely impacts us” and noted they were asked all the same questions about accessibility when WWE moved to Peacock years ago.

“(Moving to Peacock) was a total success. We play the long game with WWE and we’re doing the same with ESPN,” he said.

He then put over the ESPN Unlimited platform, calling it a “phenomenal package if you’re a sports fan” and added that “things will immediately get better” for WWE when Comcast, YouTube and Dish all allow their subscribers to authenticate and get the service for free. (Comcast Xfinity actually launched that capability last weekend while it might be until the fall for YouTube.)

“That is (the $29.99 monthly cost without authenticating), I believe, is somewhat prohibitive, especially in today’s economy and the struggles that certainly middle income and low income earners are having with affordability. They have to get those deals done. Until they do, that will affect our audience,” he said, adding they are excited about everything getting done.

Shapiro said that for this past weekend’s Elimination Chamber, they saw “a significant increase in audience” from last September’s Wrestlepalooza and “are already making strides.” He admitted they aren’t where they were a year ago with Netflix or Peacock, but he was “super encouraged” by the numbers WWE president Nick Khan was sending him every hour this past weekend.

The future of WWE NXT PLEs on Peacock did not come up.

What did come up with the impending possibility of Paramount Skydance acquiring WBD which Shapiro said is “only good for us.” He specifically mentioned TNT and HBO being synonymous with sports, something he brought up before, suggesting that TNT might make a good home for UFC events if a deal was to go through.

WOR: AEW Dynamite report, injury updates, WWE 2025 financials & news

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back with tons to talk about including the death of Bobby Douglas, Bronson Reed biceps update, TKO business notes from today’s earnings call, AJ Styles reiterates retirement, Stand and Deliver not in Vegas, Arena Mexico, the Dynamite and NXT reports, Penelope Ford injured, and more.

A packed show as always so check it out~!

Timestamps:
Start: Ric Flair’s 77th birthday, Bobby Douglas passes away
6:08: Bronson Reed update, TKO business notes
14:15: New WrestleMania weekend events announced, NXT Stand & Deliver moved
20:52: AJ Styles confirms he’s retired
26:31: Arena Mexico notes, ratings
37:03: AEW Dynamite recap
55:47: WWE NXT recap

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TKO exec says WWE & UFC are each $20 billion properties

Posted on by Josh Nason

TKO head Mark Shapiro isn’t shy about the success of both WWE and UFC.

During a Super Bowl week appearance on The Pat McAfee Show Friday, he and TKO executive chairman Ari Emanuel talked about TKO business, boxing, and personal stories.

At one point, Shapiro said that both WWE and UFC were ‘$20 billion properties…each” which led to Emanuel intimating in a joking way that he wasn’t supposed to say that followed by Shapiro saying “it’s all public info.”

As of Friday at 2 pm Eastern, TKO’s listed market cap is just over $41 billion which includes WWE, UFC, Professional Bull Riders, OnDemand, and IMG. The company was officially formed in September 2023 with the merger of WWE and UFC.

TKO has more than doubled in value since September 2023 and is trading at nearly $211 per share as of this writing. They will announce their Q4 and full 2025 financials in late-February.

State official: TKO is ‘very good at instilling fear’ due to WWE & UFC revenue

Posted on by Josh Nason

New reporting from The Guardian Wednesday has the estimated amount that Paramount Skydance is paying TKO for Zuffa Boxing broadcast rights in addition to some interesting quotes regarding the tactics of WWE and UFC’s parent company.

Longtime boxing writer Thomas Hauser delved into the emergence of the new Zuffa entity and the concerns around fighter pay that have been a part of the conversation around UFC for years.

In a passage regarding the controversial amendments around the Ali Act that TKO would like to put into place, Hauser wrote that several arenas like MSG and the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles support the amendments as do various officials with state athletic commissions.

“TKO and Zuffa play hardball,” one state regulator told the Guardian. “And they generate so much revenue from WWE and UFC that no one wants to cross them.”

“They’re very good at instilling fear,” another official said.

The article also goes into a Zuffa Boxing contract in full detail, a contract which reads very similar to UFC contracts with regard to fighter’s rights, fights they have to be offered every year and that process, merchandise rights, and more.

“Many of these rights, while not exclusive beyond the term of the contract, extend non-exclusively in perpetuity,” Hauser notes. WWE contracts were not mentioned.

From the article, Hauser stated that it’s believed TKO is getting $100 million per year for 12 boxing cards which is a wide gap from the the $1.1 billion UFC gets per year for its 40+ numbered events and Fight Night cards via their new seven year domestic rights deal.