Boxing · PURSES · 2021
Boxing purses in 2021
31 boxers were paid $288,021,700 across 53 bouts in 2021. The biggest single purse was $50,000,000, to Tyson Fury against Deontay Wilder.
TOTAL PURSES$288,021,700$288.0m
BOUTS53
BOXERS31
BIGGEST PURSE$50,000,000$50.0m Tyson Fury
MEAN PER BOUT$5,434,372$5.4m
TOP EARNER$75,000,000$75.0m Canelo Alvarez
Who was paid most in 2021
Every purse we hold from the year, folded into the boxer who took it.
Every purse we hold from 2021
Tap a column heading to re-rank| # | BOXER | PURSE | OPPONENT | RESULT | DATE | DIVISION |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Tyson Fury | $50,000,000$50.0m | Deontay Wilder | WinKO 11 | 9 October 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 02 | Anthony Joshua | $40,000,000$40.0m | Oleksandr Usyk | LossUD | 25 September 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 03 | Canelo Alvarez | $40,000,000$40.0m | Caleb Plant | WinTKO 11 | 6 November 2021 | Middleweight |
| 04 | Canelo Alvarez | $35,000,000$35.0m | Billy Joe Saunders | WinRTD 8 | 8 May 2021 | Middleweight |
| 05 | Deontay Wilder | $27,500,000$27.5m | Tyson Fury | LossKO 11 | 1 October 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 06 | Oleksandr Usyk | $11,300,000$11.3m | Anthony Joshua | WinUD | 25 September 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 07 | Devin Haney | $10,000,000$10.0m | Joseph Diaz Jr | WinUD | 4 December 2021 | Lightweight |
| 08 | Manny Pacquiao | $10,000,000$10.0m | Yordenis Ugás | LossUD | 21 August 2021 | Welterweight |
| 09 | Terence Crawford | $7,000,000$7.0m | Shawn Porter | WinTKO 10 | 20 November 2021 | Middleweight |
| 10 | Devin Haney | $5,500,000$5.5m | Jorge Linares | WinUD | 29 May 2021 | Lightweight |
| 11 | Dillian Whyte | $5,000,000$5.0m | Alexander Povetkin | WinTKO 4 | 27 March 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 12 | Joseph Parker | $4,000,000$4.0m | Derek Chisora | WinSD | 1 May 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 13 | Teofimo Lopez Jr | $3,911,700$3.9m | George Kambosos Jr | LossSD | 27 November 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 14 | Gervonta Davis | $3,500,000$3.5m | Isaac Cruz | WinUD | 5 December 2021 | Super Featherweight |
| 15 | Joseph Parker | $3,400,000$3.4m | Derek Chisora | WinUD | 18 December 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 16 | Gervonta Davis | $3,250,000$3.3m | Mario Barrios | WinTKO 11 | 26 June 2021 | Super Featherweight |
| 17 | Shakur Stevenson | $3,200,000$3.2m | Jamel Herring | WinTKO 10 | 23 October 2021 | Lightweight |
| 18 | Andy Ruiz Jr | $2,500,000$2.5m | Chris Arreola | WinUD | 1 May 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 19 | Jake Paul | $2,500,000$2.5m | Tyron Woodley | - | 29 July 2021 | Cruiserweight |
| 20 | Derek Chisora | $2,400,000$2.4m | Joseph Parker | LossUD | 18 December 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 21 | Daniel Dubois | $2,000,000$2.0m | Bogdan Dinu | WinKO 2 | 5 June 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 22 | Derek Chisora | $2,000,000$2.0m | Joseph Parker | LossSD | 1 May 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 23 | Jake Paul | $2,000,000$2.0m | Tyron Woodley | WinKO 6 | 18 December 2021 | Cruiserweight |
| 24 | Jake Paul | $1,290,000$1.3m | Ben Askren | WinTKO 1 | 17 April 2021 | Cruiserweight |
| 25 | Shakur Stevenson | $1,250,000$1.3m | Jeremia Nakathila | WinUD | 12 June 2021 | Lightweight |
| 26 | Gilberto Ramírez | $1,050,000$1.1m | Yunieski Gonzalez | WinTKO 10 | 18 December 2021 | Cruiserweight |
| 27 | Gilberto Ramírez | $1,010,000$1.0m | Sullivan Barrera | WinKO 4 | 9 July 2021 | Cruiserweight |
| 28 | Joseph Parker | $850,000$850k | Junior Fa | WinUD | 27 February 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 29 | Ryan Garcia | $800,000$800k | Luke Campbell | WinTKO 7 | 2 January 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 30 | Dmitry Bivol | $750,000$750k | Umar Salamov | WinUD | 11 December 2021 | Light Heavyweight |
| 31 | Isaac Cruz | $750,000$750k | Gervonta Davis | LossUD | 5 December 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 32 | Naoya Inoue | $500,000$500k | Aran Dipaen | WinTKO 8 | 14 December 2021 | Bantamweight |
| 33 | Chris Eubank Jr | $400,000$400k | Wanik Awdijan | WinRTD 5 | 16 October 2021 | Middleweight |
| 34 | Chris Eubank Jr | $400,000$400k | Marcus Morrison | WinUD | 1 May 2021 | Middleweight |
| 35 | David Benavidez | $400,000$400k | Kyrone Davis | WinTKO 7 | 13 November 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 36 | David Benavidez | $400,000$400k | Ronald Ellis | WinTKO 11 | 13 March 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 37 | Jaron Ennis | $400,000$400k | Thomas Dulorme | WinKO 1 | 30 October 2021 | Welterweight |
| 38 | Dmitry Bivol | $300,000$300k | Craig Richards | WinUD | 1 May 2021 | Light Heavyweight |
| 39 | Jaron Ennis | $200,000$200k | Sergey Lipinets | WinKO 6 | 10 April 2021 | Welterweight |
| 40 | Vergil Ortiz Jr | $200,000$200k | Egidijus Kavaliauskas | WinTKO 8 | 14 August 2021 | Welterweight |
| 41 | Vergil Ortiz Jr | $200,000$200k | Maurice Hooker | WinTKO 7 | 20 March 2021 | Welterweight |
| 42 | Badou Jack | $100,000$100k | Samuel Crossed | WinKO 2 | 26 November 2021 | Cruiserweight |
| 43 | Badou Jack | $100,000$100k | Dervin Colina | WinTKO 4 | 6 June 2021 | Cruiserweight |
| 44 | Daniel Dubois | $100,000$100k | Joe Cusumano | WinTKO 1 | 29 August 2021 | Heavyweight |
| 45 | Lamont Roach Jr | $100,000$100k | René Alvarado | WinUD | 18 December 2021 | Super Featherweight |
| 46 | Isaac Cruz | $75,000$75k | Francisco Vargas | WinUD | 19 June 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 47 | Isaac Cruz | $75,000$75k | Jose Matias Romero | WinUD | 13 March 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 48 | Sebastian Fundora | $75,000$75k | Sergio Garcia | WinUD | 5 December 2021 | Light Middleweight |
| 49 | Subriel Matías | $75,000$75k | Batyrzhan Jukembayev | WinRTD 8 | 29 May 2021 | Super Lightweight |
| 50 | Sebastian Fundora | $70,000$70k | Jorge Cota | WinTKO 4 | 1 May 2021 | Light Middleweight |
| 51 | Lamont Roach Jr | $60,000$60k | Daniel Rosas | WinTKO 2 | 9 July 2021 | Super Featherweight |
| 52 | Alexis Rocha | $40,000$40k | Jeovanis Barraza | - | 13 November 2021 | Welterweight |
| 53 | Alexis Rocha | $40,000$40k | Jameson Bacon | - | 19 June 2021 | Welterweight |
The belts on the line in 2021
30 of the 53 purses we hold from 2021 were paid for a night with a world title on it. The rows overlap: a unification puts more than one belt on the same fight.
| BELT | BOUTS | TOTAL PURSES | BIGGEST PURSE |
|---|---|---|---|
| WBC | 8 | $173,800,000$173.8m | Tyson Fury |
| The Ring | 6 | $156,911,700$156.9m | Tyson Fury |
| WBO | 15 | $154,711,700$154.7m | Anthony Joshua |
| WBA | 14 | $151,361,700$151.4m | Anthony Joshua |
| IBF | 5 | $95,711,700$95.7m | Anthony Joshua |
| IBO | 2 | $51,300,000$51.3m | Anthony Joshua |
28 of the 50 bouts we hold a result for ended before the last scheduled round.
How 2021 compares
Purses paid in each year we hold, in time order.
$85m 09
$82m 10
$119m 11
$167m 12
$160m 13
$196m 14
$503m 15
$126m 16
$424m 17
$251m 18
$403m 19
$175m 20
$288m 21
$329m 22
$417m 23
$782m 24
$811m 25
$154m 26
2021 ranks 8 of the 18 years on record, worth 5.3% of the $5,470,613,459 paid across them. That is 64.6% more than 2020, which paid $174,990,000.
What a purse is, and what it is not
Every figure on these pages is what a boxer was paid to fight: the contracted purse for one night. It is not what he earned that year and it is not his income. Pay-per-view points, sponsorship, ticket money and whatever a promoter settles afterwards sit outside it. A bonus written into the fight contract is inside it.
Frequently asked questions
How much were boxers paid in 2021?
$288,021,700, across 53 bouts and 31 boxers. That is a mean of $5,434,372 a bout.
Who was the highest paid boxer of 2021?
Canelo Alvarez, on $75,000,000 from 2 bouts in 2021, ahead of Tyson Fury on $50,000,000.
What was the biggest purse of 2021?
$50,000,000, to Tyson Fury against Deontay Wilder on 9 October 2021.
Boxing purses year by year
The 18 years we hold enough purses to rank, newest first.