The documentary Fighting Politics is, at least based on the portions I've seen, fairly anti-UFC. In this clip, Rich Franklin makes clear that he's not personally anti-UFC. But he does wish he and other UFC fighters could make more money.
"The UFC treats me great," Franklin says. "They treat me personally very well. You could interview 100 different fighters and get 100 different opinions but I'm happy with the organization. But if I could change one thing I'd change the paydays. There are guys who play in the NFL and play three or five years and they're millionaires. This sport, unless you're #1 or #2 it's very difficult to fight for three or five years and be that #5 guy and still leave the sport as a millionaire. That's what makes it difficult. So if there's one thing I could change it would be that."
Franklin isn't complaining, but he is making a very valid point about the payscale in MMA: A fighter like Franklin, a former UFC champion who has been fighting for years in front of sold-out arenas and millions of people watching at home, isn't making anything close to the kind of money that a mediocre NFL player makes. That's the reality of the business.
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