The cat’s out of the bag! And as it turns out, it’s not a cat at all—it’s a lion. Former heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, intentionally or not, has leaked the purse Alex Pereira is set to receive for his heavyweight debut against Ciryl Gane at UFC Freedom 250 on Sunday at the White House.

Before the pre-fight press conference on Saturday, DC spoke with several fighters on the card on his YouTube channel. One of those conversations was with the Brazilian. During the exchange, Cormier brought up a proposition to place a bet on the FIFA World Cup, which kicked off on June 11.

Cormier proposed a $5,000 bet on whether Team USA or Team Brazil would “go deeper in the tournament.” While ‘Poatan’ was open to the wager, he suggested the money should go to a nonprofit organization and insisted the stake be raised to $20,000.

Cormier countered by increasing his offer to $10,000, but Alex Pereira remained firm on $20,000. In an apparent attempt to highlight just how much more money Pereira was earning, Cormier seemingly let Pereira’s purse for the upcoming fight slip.

“He is the only fighter in the White House making $10 million,” Cormier said. “He’s the only one fighting at the White House making $10 million, not me… The first time I tried to bet [with] him on Brazil, he wanted only $2,500. But it’s all those contracts now. He wants to bet $20,000.”

Hearing that, the Brazilian former light heavyweight champion agreed to settle on a $10,000 bet, with the wager hinging on which team advances farther in the FIFA World Cup. While Pereira is making $10 million, there’s no word on how much Ciryl Gane will be pocketing from the bout.

However, the same hasn’t been confirmed by the UFC, which is often the case. In his prior fights, ‘Poatan’ supposedly was making around $3 million per bout, so $10 million is a decent jump. But perhaps he could have made even more had the opponent been Jon Jones. 

Jon Jones had wanted to face the Brazilian on the White House card. However, the UFC only offered him half of what he was offered to face Tom Aspinall, resulting in the fight’s failure. Still, Pereira’s $10 million could be the biggest purse the UFC has ever paid a fighter. 

According to various reports, Brock Lesnar made an astonishing $8 million for his fight against Mark Hunt. Others like Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey also make the list with payouts ranging from $6 million to $4 million. However, Alex Pereira appears to have left them all in the dust. 

And considering the huge number, when Dovy shared the news on X, fans immediately erupted. 

Fan claims Daniel Cormier is lying about the $10 million purse for Alex Pereira

Despite the large number, this user wasn’t satisfied. “When you consider taxes, coaches needing to get paid, + travel expenses, that $10 million isn’t even a lot. He should be getting double or triple that,” the user commented. However, the specifics of Pereira’s contract with the UFC are unknown, so it’s a little difficult to say how much of the $10 million he will be left with. 

Another user outright accused Daniel Cormier of lying. “DC is such a good company man; he even lies about the fighter pay,” the user commented. While UFC has often been accused of underpaying its fighters, its top stars don’t often get that treatment. Still, compared to other sports like boxing, the NFL, and more, pay in the UFC is especially low. 

Meanwhile, this fan decided to celebrate Pereira’s paycheck. “Deserves it…. Saved UFC cards many times with short notice fights…. Usually puts on exciting fights with finishes…. Has aura for days,” the fan posted. The Brazilian has enjoyed one of the fastest rises in UFC history. After making his promotional debut in November 2021, Pereira needed just over a year to reach the top, knocking out Israel Adesanya at UFC 281 to capture the middleweight title and become a UFC champion for the first time.

Someone else congratulated Pereira. “That’s a lot of money G,” the fan noted. It’s also the biggest purse Alex Pereira has ever received. 

The next user was concerned about someone else. “Someone check on Jon Jones,” the user wrote. Jones didn’t just miss out on one big payday but two. 

Having said that, Alex Pereira isn’t just set to fight in a new division; he is also set to make the most money in the UFC. All that is left is to win the upcoming fight.