After watching some women’s boxing matches with a couple of rising stars, I was wondering how much the pro boxer makes each year. the answer may surprise you and make you want to be a professional boxer.
How much do professional boxers earn? boxers can earn between $200 and $400 per fight at a lower level. money can be raised based on your weight class, sponsors and fight records. the median is $51,370 for professionals annually.
Below, we’ll cover how these things can affect pay, as well as which professional female boxers achieved the most in their careers.
how does weight influence?
With each weight class a boxer moves up to, the more difficult the competition becomes. this is in terms of things like hitting power, fighting experience, and some serious strategies that have been revisited over and over again to get to that level. That said, it’s not uncommon for a female boxer to see a nice raise for her efforts.
Training to a higher weight class can take years to accomplish, and the achievement itself is something to be proud of. this also makes it much easier to get sponsors because they see the determination to move up and go further.
the more they go up, the more they start to make a name for themselves and increase their income.
how do matches affect salary?
boxing is famous for pitting the best against each other. a lot of people want to see fighters with impressive fight histories, and this makes the matchups that much more interesting for viewers. heavyweight certainly gets the most attention, as the class is infamous for its fighters having more than enough fighting experience to back up that right hook if it doesn’t hit the mark.
A female boxer can expect to see $200-$400 per fight at smaller stakes. fight history determines which opponents you will face with higher winning streaks, meaning a higher possible payout than lower levels.
There are 17 different classes for women in her division, with only 3 available at the Olympics. heavyweight for women is 175 pounds, where the men’s division usually starts at 200 pounds. each division comes with its own set of strict fitness standards that all boxers must follow to stay in those categories.
Alejandra Jiménez is the reigning Women’s Heavyweight Champion with an estimated net worth of $11 million. She is the second Latina boxer to win a world championship in her heavyweight category and won the title after beating her first winner, Martha Salazar. She has a high record for winning fights, with 11 wins out of 12 fights of hers and one draw.
how do sponsorships affect pay?
Big-name brands can keep an eye out for potential talent rising through the ranks. This gives them a way to help push their products by putting someone in the public eye. You will notice that many high earning boxers, both branded and female, have a good number of sponsors supporting them every fight.
these can also make some money. just by ordering t-shirts, hats and shorts you can get some money from what they have earned. a simple hat can cost $5,000 for some boxers.
how do you get sponsors?
Many sponsors will camp out at many wrestling events. even in some boxing gyms, but that’s not as common as seeing a big-name company in the crowd at events. the chance of getting a better sponsor, or just one to begin with, improves with weight level.
They really won’t care about someone who hasn’t had a fair amount of matches under their belt. every beginning boxer struggles to get attention from him, and many often fail due to exhaustion early on. Maintaining a consistent win rate is key for most boxers looking to gain some form of sponsorship.
Their requirements will vary, as will their pay and the cost it takes to get a chance to work with them. Social media is also a great way for female boxers to gain solid ground in getting sponsors. Social profiles allow boxers to routinely update their fans and show how competent they are in their profession.
For those looking for a venue for sponsorships at a lower level, there are many websites that allow you to connect with coaches and promoters in addition to sponsors. Boxers also have to promote their loyalty to the brand as one of its ambassadors, and they will have to maintain a good image in and out of the ring so that the contracts are maintained in the long term.
what kind of sponsorships are available?
There are a lot of potential sponsors who are looking for new wrestlers to sponsor. Some of these companies include:
- hayabusa
- tatami
- gameplay
- garden of life.
- travel expenses
- insurance
- training costs
- lucia rijker
- cecilia braekhus
- laila ali
- regina halmich
- ann wolfe
Some companies may sponsor only women, giving them an advantage by cutting out a good chunk of the competition. these days, companies are oriented towards the influence that the fighter can give to the brand of him. The better the boxer connects with his fans and promotes the material he wears inside the ring, the more he will be paid.
how much do professional boxers spend?
see how a boxer is not technically an employee of the commissions that organize the fights, that means they have to pay things out of pocket like:
you can say that until a boxer reaches the professional levels, it can be difficult to receive a stable income. annual costs could add up to thousands just for a fight that could net them a few hundred dollars, making sponsors a vital part of their career if they want to make it long term.
boxers usually pay their trainer 10% of their money and another percentage goes to their manager. In some states, the percentage could be 1/3 of the pay they earn for each game. this is not unreasonable, as the manager is responsible for scheduling flights and negotiating contracts with future sponsors.
who are some of the best (and highest paid) professional female boxers?
There have been a plethora of women who have succeeded in making boxing their career. Many of these big names include:
These are women who have a very high winning streak, with a few losses under their belt. this helped them a lot to get more sponsors, and many of their professional fights were televised in their countries and even all over the world. each boxer has multiple titles under his name that have a lot of influence with advertisers.
Sponsors know these fighters are safe bets. their world-renowned titles can make a lot of money for whoever they decide to be brand ambassadors for. One of the most notable, Laila Alli, is the eighth daughter of Muhammad Ali himself.
This could have given him a good reputation in boxing early on, and it’s not unrealistic to say that many wanted to see if he shared his father’s talents. with her 24 wins and 21 of them knocked out, it is very apparent that she is the daughter of her father.
cecilia braekhus has an even more impressive record, with 31 matches undefeated, she has more than earned her belts, which she has defended more than 20 separate times.
amateur salary vs. professional salary
The difference between an amateur salary and a professional salary can be huge, and it may take a few years of trial and error with sponsors to reach a living wage. below, we will list the salaries of boxers in both leagues
Take these numbers with a grain of salt, as they can range from weight level and promoters, to even state estimates. what separates these two salary ranges is the previous skill that has been demonstrated in the ring and how well the boxers are able to connect with a wider audience
how much is it worth compared to men?
A boxer just starting out can earn between $200 and $400 per fight. men can be paid between $2,500 and $5,000 for the same factors. one of the main differences between the two categories is the champions, and how many of them are consistently tagged throughout their career.
how could they charge more?
Women’s boxing has not had the same massive success as men’s. this means that women do not have the same access to promoters and televised events as their male counterparts, which affects their overall salary.
A good way to draw more crowds for women’s boxing could be a sports crossover with mma-star Ronda Rousey. The Men’s League did this by bringing in MMA’s greatest fighter, Connor McGregor, to fight boxing’s greatest champions, Floyd Mayweather.
Basically, Ronda would have to be trained in boxing and use her mixed martial arts background to help her in the ring. this has the potential to attract millions of viewers and expose big name female boxers that people will remember.
A female boxer can also receive a better boxing income if she had boxed in the Olympics. this would mark the boxer as highly skilled, seeing how she has represented her country in international competitions and she may have a fan base that is ready to see her career grow outside of the olympics.