This should wake some people up who say yeah but they can get their own sponsors in Bellator. The sponsorship market aint what it used to be.
But his value is much less fighting in Bellator than in UFC. And that is what the sponsors are telling him with their lack of money. No one is breaking down his door to sponsor him. There just isn't the cash in MMA anymore. And certainly not outside of UFC. But let dumb MMA fans tell us different.
Pretty much Days of Tapout and 90 other apparel companies is more or less over and they were always the most consistent sponsors of MMA. It's partly why Zuffa went with the Reebok and tried to create a uniform for a fighter. So people would buy a fighters shirt and not some random Afflication shirt or tapout shirt. Similar to people buying jerseys in other sports. Though I don't think the Reebok deal quite worked out the way they thought or at the very least its still evolving into what they hope it will be.
The days of a easy cash grab for a 30 second spot showing your t-shirt are over. Sponsorships evolved and the best way to see it these days is on the regional scene. I have regional fighter friends who get monthly stipends from sponsors but they also promote their brands constantly on their social media, show videos of them taking it. etc. they also work more like a partnership than a sponsorship. Stann said for many of his big corporate sponsors (he was getting 10k/month in sponsor pay year round) he would do seminars and motivational speech's. You just have to have a manager who looks past easy cash grabs for t-shirts.
Biggest free agent signing who is a star, hyped like crazy, main event and in a title fight made less than 15k. Didnt even make as much as shit Reebok money. Thats decent? Not saying he cant get more or others cant get some more but its basically giving fans an idea what a top guy can get out there and its not nearly as much as some pretend it is. Shit Ben Saunders was saying he made more in Reebok money than he got in Bellator.
Benson was much more will known when he was fighting in UFC. I mean what happen to Phil davis, he kinda drop off face of the earth in MMA world.
