By Katrina Belcher (KatrinaBelcher@mmaratings.net)
A lot of people nowadays are asking the same question: “What do MMA Referees make?”
What a great question! To find out, I went to where the most popular MMA events are held – Nevada, and asked the Nevada State Athletic Commission that and the following questions. They were kind enough to provide us with some answers.
Keep in mind the following information will not always be the same in your state, but these are some good “general” rules to live by.
1 – Can you tell me how much professional and amateur MMA Referees make for their services? Are the fees different for a pro vs. an amateur referee?
Most AC’s do not not set the fees for amateur events but the professional MMA referees make between $200 and $1200 per event, depending on the expected revenue (gate) of the event.
2 – Do MMA referees get paid a “pre-set” amount, and is that set by the Athletic Commissioner, the event promoter or who?
Pre-set by the AC.
3 – Do they get paid per event, or per fight? So let’s say they get paid $100. Is that $100 per fight in which they officiate (so 2 fights in one night and they make $200), or $100 per event, no matter how many fights they officate?
MMA referees get paid per event, in most states.
4 – Are MMA ref’s assigned to an event by the State Athletic Commissioner, or can promotions like the UFC pick and choose the ref’s they want officiating their events? In other words, promoters don’t just use their own ref’s, right?
Correct; it is the AC that assigns MMA ref’s to an event.
5 – Who assigns what fight to the ref? The State Athletic Commissioner, the promoter, or?
The AC assigns each MMA referee to a fight.
6 – Finally, is there a limit as to number of fights an MMA ref can officiate in one night?
No, but the AC usually limits a referee to no more than 5 bouts in most states.
We appreciate this great information and thank the Nevada State AC for their assistance!
