Matt Riddle Still Collecting Paychecks from UFC Thanks to Lawsuit

Matt Riddle always manages to get involved in controversies, whether it is in WWE or UFC for that matter. Riddle’s UFC firing in 2013 is a known fact by now, but it appears Riddle has revealed that he is still getting paid by the UFC because of a major lawsuit.

While speaking on Developmentally Speaking, Matt Riddle was asked about his life after his WWE release. The King of Bros stated that he’s happy to have control over his life again and can now make his own choices. For years, even before WWE, he had to give up control of his time and schedule to chase his career goals.

“I really enjoy having my life, you know? In the sense that, if I don’t want to do something, I don’t have to do it. I can make choices now. That was something I hadn’t been able to do for a long time. Even before WWE, the only way to get there was by basically giving up that kind of control. So, it was a good decade or so of not having any say over my life, my time, or my schedule.”

When reflecting on his WWE release, Riddle admitted it came with both pros and cons. On the downside, he acknowledged being fired and the loss of potentially earning millions. However, the positives outweighed the negatives for him as Riddle noted that no longer working under Dana White or TKO was a significant benefit.

Matt Riddle noted that another positive is that he’s part of a lawsuit against the UFC for the time he spent fighting for them. Because of that, he’s still getting paid. Even though he got fired, he considers this a win and is grateful for the payments.

“When I got released, I thought, ‘This is good.’ I looked at the pros and cons. The cons? Okay, I got fired. Am I gonna get paid millions of dollars? Probably not. But the pros? Dana White’s not my boss. I don’t work for TKO anymore.

Another pro is there’s a huge lawsuit against them, and I’m part of that because I fought for them a bunch during that time period. So, I’m going to collect my check. Technically, even though I got fired, I’m still getting paid. So, thank you, TKO and UFC, for that!”

In October of this year, a federal judge in Las Vegas gave preliminary approval to a class-action settlement requiring the UFC to pay $375 million to fighters who claimed they were underpaid for years.

The class-action lawsuits, filed in 2014 and 2021, accused the UFC of using its market dominance to acquire or block rival promoters and enforce exclusive contracts that restricted fighters to the organization. The settlement covers over 1,000 fighters who competed in UFC bouts between 2010 and 2017. Depending on various factors, fighters would receive payouts ranging from $15,000 to over $1 million each.

As for Matt Riddle’s future in the world of MMA, he is open to returning sometime around 2025, so it remains to be seen whether The King of Bros will make his MMA comeback as fans would love to see that happen.

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