PFL lightweight Shane Burgos is baffled as to why more UFC fighters don't test the market.

Burgos is among a few notable names — including Francis Ngannou — to depart the UFC and test free agency before eventually signing with the PFL.

The former UFC featherweight is now not only is making a “stupid amount of money” as he previously stated, but also has a chance to win the million dollar prize at the end of each PFL season.

And while there's no hard feelings between him and UFC president Dana White by any means, Burgos feels it makes no sense not to test the market — especially for fighters who end up being ranked.

“It doesn’t make sense for fighters to not test [free agency] out, in my opinion, especially as you go further,” Burgos told MMA Fighting. “I was in the rankings for a couple years at that point and it made sense for me to test it out. Why wouldn’t I test it out to see what I’m worth? In my mind, I know what I’m worth — a billion dollars — but I want to see what these other promotions think I’m worth. I don’t see why any fighter, especially ranked fighters, wouldn’t do this. But don’t be scared if you’re not ranked.

“You’ve got guys that have been in the UFC for so many years that’s never even tried testing it out and it’s really mind blowing to me. Are you married to the UFC? Because the UFC, they’ll replace you at the drop of a hat. Because they’re not married to you as much as you’re married to them. You can’t fall in love with three letters. You’ve got to do what’s right and this isn’t a long career.”

While the UFC is the premier and most famous MMA organization in the world, money trumps legacy and social media followings almost every time — especially when Burgos weighed up the pros and cons.

“Money talks and when you’ve got guys that are making a million dollars, maybe you don’t have as many Instagram followers as guys in the UFC on the undercard but what holds more weight — Instagram followers or a couple million dollars in the bank?” Burgos added. “When I sat back and I thought about the pros and cons, it just didn’t make sense for me not to sign the deal that I signed with the PFL.

“I’m so happy with the decision that I made and Francis signing only further solidifies my joy and my happiness with my decision.”

Burgos was eliminated from the 2023 PFL playoffs, but was recently reinstated — which means he'll get another shot at winning the million dollar prize and adding to his bank account.