WEC 45 fighter salaries and paydays for 'Cerrone vs Ratcliff'

The official fighter purses for those who competed at WEC 45: "Cerrone vs Ratcliff" this past Saturday night (Dec. 19) from "The Pearl" at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, were released earlier today by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC).

Butt-kicking bantamweight Joseph Benavidez went home the top earner of the night after pocketing a crisp $25,000 for his knockout win over Rani Yahya. That was just $1,000 higher than the second biggest banker Donal Cerrone. "Cowboy" raked in $24,000, which he probably carried home in the yam-bag of Ed Ratcliff.

Former IFL standout and lightweight future star Chris Horodecki helped himself to $12,000 of the promotion's green -- despite a disappointing TKO loss to Anthony Njokuani, who went home $8,000 richer than he came in.

Scott Jorgensen ($14,000) and Bart Palaszewski ($10,000) also broke double digits with their winning performances.

Here is the complete list of WEC 45 payouts:

Donald Cerrone -- $24,000 ($12,000 to show, $12,000 to win)
Ed Ratcliff -- $9,000
Cerrone defeated Ratcliff via submission (rear naked choke) in round three

Anthony Njokuani -- $8,000 ($4,000 to show, $4,000 to win)
Chris Horodecki -- $12,000
Njokuani defeated Horodecki via technical knockout (strikes) in round one

Joseph Benavidez -- $25,000 ($12,500 to show, $12,500 to win)
Rani Yahya -- $9,000
Benavidez defeated Yahya via knockout (punch) in round one

Scott Jorgensen -- $14,000 ($7,000 to show, $7,000 to win)
Takeya Mizugaki -- $8,000
Jorgensen defeated Mizugaki via unanimous decision

Bart Palaszewski -- $10,000 ($5,000 to show, $5,000 to win)
Anthony Pettis -- $3,000
Palaszewski defeated Pettis via split decision

Zach Micklewright -- $4,000 ($2,000 to show, $2,000 to win)
Muhsin Corbbrey -- $4,000
Micklewright defeated Corbbrey via unanimous decision

Chad George -- $5,000 ($3,000 to show, $2,000 to win)
Josh Hosman -- $3,000
George defeated Hosman via unanimous decision

Brandon Visher -- $6,000 ($3,000 to show, $3,000 to win)
Courtney Buck -- $3,000
Visher defeated Buck via technical knockout (strikes) in round one

Brad Pickett -- $6,000 ($3,000 to show, $3,000 to win)
Kyle Dietz -- $3,000
Pickett defeated Dietz via submission (Peruvian necktie) in round two

Erik Koch -- $4,000 ($2,000 to show, $2,000 to win)
Jameel Massouh -- $3,000
Koch defeated Massouh via unanimous decision

Keep in mind the salaries listed above do not include fight bonuses, sponsorships, percentages and other unofficial payments. It also does not include deductions for expenses such as insurance, taxes, etc.

For example, the WEC often hands out extra cash for "Fight of the Night," "Knockout of the Night" and "Submission of the Night." To check out these figures for WEC 45 go here.

The total base fighter payroll for the Versus TV event was $162,000.

For complete results and coverage of "Cerrone vs Ratcliff" click here and here.