"I make just as much as I do with endorsements as I do as a professional fighter, so I don’t have to worry about only receiving half my pay with a loss,” Theodorou, who faces Trevor Smith (15-7 MMA, 5-4 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 130, told MMAjunkie. “So even though I lost to Brad Tavares, I still walked away with a six-figure contract for my hair.”
Shampoo brand Pert Plus got into the Elias Theodorou business this past year, handing him a chuck of cash to lather his mane with their product. That’s brought valuable exposure outside the MMA bubble. He also plans to turn his job as the first-ever “Ring Boy” for the all-female MMA promotion Invicta FC into a bigger side hustle, complete with a calendar filled with UFC fighters. He’s also working on a movie about a fighter who turns into a professional gamer after getting injured.
The point is, Theodorou doesn’t feel like his destiny hinges on wins and losses inside the octagon.
“I don’t necessarily see myself as a UFC fighter,” he said. “I see myself as Elias. And one of the kind of cool things that I’m kind of understanding is, I guess, my potential, in that regard.
UFC Fight Night 130's Elias Theodorou says he makes more money with sponsors than UFC
