A.J. McKee earns $100,000 as PFL San Diego salaries are revealed

A.J. McKee left Pechanga Arena San Diego with $100,000 and no win bonus attached to his contract, while Salamat Isbulaev earned $10,000 after a unanimous-decision loss in the PFL San Diego main event. The California State Athletic Commission disclosed the purses after the card, putting hard numbers on the gulf between a headliner’s compensation and the pay floor for a fighter on the same stage.

McKee’s victory mattered inside the cage and on the balance sheet. MMA Junkie scored the fight 30-27 on all three cards for McKee, and the result may move the former Bellator champion closer to one-half of the Professional Fighters League’s vacant featherweight title. McKee, who is based in Long Beach, California, fought in his home state on a show the PFL promoted as its first visit to San Diego. The event took place on June 27, 2026, and aired live on ESPN2 at 10 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. PT, with the prelims streaming on the ESPN app.

The co-main event carried similar stakes for Liz Carmouche, the 2025 PFL flyweight champion and a San Diego-area fighter. Carmouche submitted Viviane Araujo with a guillotine choke at 2:07 of Round 2, extending a run of four straight PFL victories and strengthening her case for another title opportunity. On a card built around recognizable names and title implications, Carmouche’s finish and McKee’s dominant decision underscored how the PFL is trying to package elite competition for a national audience while keeping its roster costs contained.

That tension sits at the center of the sport’s economics. A $10,000 purse can disappear quickly once a fighter pays for training camp, sparring partners, coaches, strength and conditioning, medical treatment, travel, and the taxes and management fees that follow every paycheck. Even a $100,000 guarantee does not look lavish when spread across a full camp and the physical toll of a pro fight week, especially for athletes outside the UFC’s biggest pay tiers. The salaries from San Diego showed a business model that depends on a deep pool of fighters accepting modest guarantees in exchange for visibility, ranking opportunities, and the chance to fight for titles.

PFL announced the San Diego card on April 23, 2026, and the promotion’s next scheduled event is July 19 in Washington. For McKee, Carmouche, and the fighters farther down the pay sheet, the event offered both a showcase and a reminder of how little many mixed martial artists earn when the lights are brightest.