The Octagon returned to France for today’s UFC Paris event, and four fighters wound up taking home performance bonuses.
The fight card was headlined by a key middleweight matchup featuring Nassourdine Imavov taking on fellow division contender Caio Borralho. The contest proved to be another strong showing from Imavov. ‘The Sniper’ used his forward pressure and quick combinations to smother and control Caio Borralho throughout the course of the fight. Although the Brazilian had some strong moments in round three, Nassourdine quickly turned the tables in round four and went on to cruise to a five-round unanimous decision victory.
UFC Paris was co-headlined by a highly anticipated lightweight bout between Mauricio Ruffy and hometown favorite Benoit Saint Denis. The contest resulted in a phenomenal showing for the hometown Frenchman in Saint Denis. The ‘God of War’ was able get the fight to the floor early and often, this while smothering Mauricio Ruffy with constant pressure and strikes. After eating a hard standing knee in the opening moments of Round 2, ‘BSD’ was once again able to get the fight to the floor where he proceeded to choke Ruffy out with a face crank / rear-naked choke (see that here).
Following the conclusion of tonight’s event, UFC officials announced at the post-fight press conference that four fighters would be taking home performance bonuses.
Performance of the night: Benoit Saint Denis earned an extra $50k for his second-round submission victory over the highly touted Mauricio Ruffy in today’s UFC Paris co-main event.
Performance of the night: Mason Jones pocketed an extra $50k for his second-round TKO victory over Bolaji Oki (see that here).
Performance of the night: Ante Delija earned an extra $50k for his first-round knockout victory over Marcin Tybura (see that here).
Performance of the night: Kaue Fernandes pocketed an extra $50k for his first-round TKO victory over Harry Hardwick on today’s prelims. Fernandes finished the fight with low kicks (see that here).
Are you surprised by any of the performance bonuses handed out by Dana White and company following the conclusion of today’s UFC Paris event? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!