UFC 331 projected payouts: Van vs. Pantoja 2 purse estimates ahead of Crypto.com Arena card
Joshua Van and Alexandre Pantoja headline UFC 331 in Los Angeles on Saturday, September 19, 2026, at the Crypto.com Arena, with analysts publishing projected purses and bonus scenarios ahead of their flyweight title rematch; the card’s co-main features Arman Tsarukyan against Mauricio Ruffy. Promoter bonuses and a one-off $50,000 award announced by Dana White add further potential earnings for fighters on the pay-per-view.
Their first meeting at UFC 323 in December 2025 lasted 26 seconds and ended when Pantoja suffered a shoulder injury after being taken to the mat by Van, producing a title change; that outcome has set the stage for Saturday’s rematch. Van’s reported pre-title-shot pay was around $145,000 per appearance, and reports following UFC 323 suggested his championship-winning night pushed his total earnings past the $1 million mark once win money, incentive pay and discretionary bonuses were included. Dana White has announced a one-off $50,000 "proper chaos bonus" tied to Paramount+ series MobLand, to be personally awarded by White, alongside the promotion’s usual $100,000 Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night awards and $25,000 for other finishes.
For his first defence and as the A-side of a pay-per-view main event, Van’s guaranteed base is projected in the $500,000-$750,000 range, with total earnings potentially climbing toward $1.5 million depending on pay-per-view performance and bonuses. Those projections reflect his elevated status as champion headlining a PPV card and the additional discretionary pay that can accompany such placement on the bill.
Alexandre Pantoja is projected to earn between $500,000 and $1 million for UFC 331; reports ahead of UFC 323 had pegged his purse for that night somewhere between $700,000 and $1 million. The 36-year-old Brazilian moved past the seven-figure threshold during a four-defence reign, but as the challenger he will not carry the champion’s share of PPV revenue while still commanding premium main-event compensation.
The co-main event at lightweight projects the biggest non-title payday on the card: Arman Tsarukyan has been candid about his pay, telling Sherdog in 2025 he takes home roughly $300,000 for a win and around $150,000 for a loss before tax and camp expenses, and commission filings placed his disclosed UFC 300 payday at $306,000. Tsarukyan’s UFC 331 total is projected between $300,000 and $500,000 once win money and potential bonuses are included. Mauricio Ruffy, a former Contender Series fighter noted for highlight-reel finishes, is projected to earn between $100,000 and $250,000 depending on result and bonuses.
Additional main-card projections include Patricio Pitbull entering the UFC on a lucrative veteran deal and expected to earn a comfortable six-figure purse for his bout with Dooho Choi, while Marlon Vera’s California commission filing from his win over Dominick Cruz listed him at $300,000 including win money. Tai Tuivasa’s reported $860,000 payday for UFC 293 against Alexander Volkov is cited as an outlier in his career earnings, and newer names on the card such as Michael Aswell Jr., JooSang Yoo, Ryan Gandra and Ozzy Diaz are placed at the entry end of the pay scale, typically in the $20,000-$50,000 range.
All figures cited are analyst projections based on prior UFC compensation data, commission filings and reported paydays; the promotion has not officially disclosed individual purses for UFC 331. The main card is scheduled to begin at 9:00 PM ET in the United States, 2:00 AM BST in the UK, 6:30 AM IST in India and 11:00 AM AEST in Australia, with viewers in India and Australia catching the event during early-morning hours local time.
UFC 331 takes place on Saturday, September 19, 2026, at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, where final, official purses and any discretionary bonuses will be confirmed by the promotion or through subsequent commission filings.