Dan Ige was rewarded handsomely for stepping up on tremendous quick discover to avoid wasting the UFC 303 co-main occasion.
Ige (18-8 MMA, 10-7 UFC), who was at house getting a therapeutic massage when the cardboard at T-Cell Enviornment in Las Vegas started, ended up preventing earlier than the primary occasion, creating arguably the wildest short-notice alternative story in UFC historical past.
Diego Lopes was scheduled to battle Brian Ortega, however he fell in poor health on battle day. Ige, who lives in Las Vegas and was already in battle camp, accepted the battle when his supervisor contacted him. Initially, Ige thought his supervisor was saying he was getting an opponent change for July 20, when he was scheduled to battle Chepe Mariscal.
Because it turned out, Ige would frantically get his issues collectively, head to the sector instantly, and prepare for a battle that evening.
The occasion had already seen greater than its share of late modifications, together with the primary occasion, Conor McGregor’s massive return to face Michael Chandler. The headliner ended up being a lightweight heavyweight title rematch between Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka.
The co-main occasion was initially set to be Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree, however after a variety of accidents and shakeups, Ortega vs. Lopes was the battle on the docket on the morning of UFC 303. Nevertheless, even that matchup didn’t final, and Ige stuffed in on the drop of a hat.
Though Ige misplaced a choice to Lopes (25-6 MMA, 4-1 UFC), the promotion compensated him properly for stepping up.
“I obtained all my cash, present and my win, and I obtained extra,” Ige advised MMA Junkie Radio. “I obtained a brand new deal out of it. I obtained paid properly. I in all probability obtained double or triple what I usually get, so it was – the quantity hit the checking account in the present day, and it seems good.
“I obtained to make these payouts, although. The payouts are larger now, however I’m blessed, man. I’m grateful, I’m joyful. You’re at all times going to need more cash in a means, so I attempt to not get too grasping in my coronary heart. However I do consider I used to be compensated pretty.”
Ige knew the last-minute state of affairs to fill in was delicate, but additionally believed he deserved to be paid appropriately. Whereas he believes he may have requested for more cash, he wouldn’t lose the chance to step up for a same-day battle on Worldwide Battle Week.
“I wasn’t going to sit down there and negotiate myself out of a deal,” Ige stated. “I wasn’t going to be like, ‘Give me $2 million,’ they usually’d be like, ‘OK, go screw your self.’ They may simply simply shut down the entire thing. This was a chance for me to change into a legend and do one thing above and past, one thing that’s by no means been achieved on this period of the game.”
Apart from monetary compensation, UFC CEO Dana White granted Ige’s request to compete at Noche UFC at Sphere in Las Vegas. Now, he has to attend to see who he’ll share the cage with on the one-off occasion on the distinctive venue.
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