HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – If Chad Mendes was to return to MMA, the numbers would have to be right.
The former UFC title challenger, who hung up his gloves in July 2019, said he’s still under contract with the UFC and would be open to competing in MMA again – only if he renegotiated his deal.
“I still have three fights on my UFC contract, and what that pay is right now, not a chance,” Mendes told MMA Junkie. “It’s just not worth it for me. If I ended up talking and we could renegotiate, possibly. But it would have to be really good money.
“(The UFC) were actually really cool about letting me come here and making money for my family. They could have said no, so the fact that they did say yes, that’s good on them. Thank you.”
Mendes, who makes his bareknuckle debut Saturday against Joshuah Alvarez in a 155-pound bout at “BKFC: Knucklemania II,” made headlines when he claimed he will be getting paid more than heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou’s entire UFC 270 purse.
But what lured Mendes to bareknuckle? The 36-year-old says it was a couple of things.
“I retired pretty much in my prime – I was 34 years old,” Mendes said. “Not because I couldn’t compete with the best in the world – I know I can. Just for me, it wasn’t worth it. I had other businesses that I started, and I was doing really well in those, so I decided to step away. This opportunity wasn’t something I went looking for. It just kind of came to me, and being in my prime for me would be kind of stupid to pass up especially because I still have that drive to compete. It’s not like I was completely done competing altogether.
“So I decided to talk numbers. We got the right type of pay figured out. It’s something I’m excited about, which makes it all worthwhile – get in there and crush my soul to get in there and compete at the highest level. It’s a different organization. It’s completely new to me, which, that in itself is pretty exciting. I’ve obviously never boxed professionally, especially not bareknuckle, so it’s something I associate with being primal. I’m really big into the outdoor industry. I love hunting, I love fishing, I love being connected to where my food comes from and the earth, and this kind of just fits right in that wheelhouse.”
Chad Mendes not ruling out MMA return, but ‘not a chance’ under his current UFC deal
