UFC, Onnit, Brendan Schaub and Tito Ortiz among those who received COVID-19 relief loans

The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the global economy. A recent study from the University of Southern California found that losses in real gross domestic product in the United States could range from a low of $ 3.2 trillion to $ 4.8 trillion over two years. The study also found that job losses could range from 14.7% to 23.8% and could affect 36.5 million American workers. The US government has helped businesses in need through the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) law, which was enacted on March 27, 2020.

The United States government’s Small Business Administration (SBA) provided businesses with two types of relief due to the COVID-19 pandemic through the CARES Act. These two types of relief were the Economic Disaster Lending (EIDL) and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

EIDL is a low interest rate loan with a rate of 3.75% APR or 2.75% APR for nonprofit organizations. Companies that receive an EIDL loan have 30 years to repay the loan. (For more details on the EIDL loan program, click here.)

The SBA has granted PPP funds to companies as an incentive to keep workers on the payroll during the COVID-19 pandemic. These loans are forgivable (they do not need to be repaid) if “all employee retention criteria are met and funds used for qualifying expenses,” according to the SBA. (For more information on PPP, click here.)

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the MMA world from top to bottom. Almost every MMA promotion has changed its business practices and its health and safety programs. Gyms of all sizes have also felt the effects of the pandemic and have had to adapt to new requirements and procedures. The pandemic in the MMA world has also had a very real human cost, as one of the sport’s most respected figures, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, died of complications from COVID-19.

Many MMA-related companies have sought government help to stay in business through the CARES Act. Bloody Elbow used multiple tracking databases to research these companies and compiled a list of loans along with the dates and amounts each company received through the CARES Act through the EIDL and PPP programs.

Below is a list of companies sorted by the amount the SBA provided them. This is an ongoing project and not a complete list. As Bloody Elbow uncovers more information, we’ll update our list.