The Octagon returned to Abu Dhabi for today’s UFC on ABC 9 event, and four fighters wound up taking home performance bonuses.
The fight card was headlined by a key middleweight contest featuring Robert Whittaker taking on Reinier de Ridder. The bout proved to be a wild back and forth affair. Robert Whittaker got off to a strong start, using his speed and angles to get the better of his opponent in the opening five minutes. However, Reinier de Ridder was able to battle back in round two, this after landing a big knee and then a takedown. The third round was absolutely hectic; Whittaker dropped De Ridder with a right hand and almost finished him off with ground and pound. Yet, despite the onslaught, ‘RDR’ was able to whether the storm before ultimately taking top position in the late stages of the round. The final two rounds were closely contested, with De Ridder landing his big knee and some body shots, while Whittaker worked to keep the fight standing while dishing out some good combinations. After 25 minutes of action, ‘RDR’ was awarded the split decision win.
UFC Abu Dhabi was co-headlined by a bantamweight contest featuring former champion Petr Yan taking on Marus McGhee. The highly anticipated scrap proved to be an entertaining back and forth affair. While McGhee managed to land a couple of big shots, it was the footwork, boxing and timely takedowns of Yan that proved to be the difference. After 15 minutes of exciting action, ‘No Mercy’ was awarded the unanimous decision win (29-28 x3).
Following the conclusion of today’s event, UFC officials announced at the post-fight press conference that four fighters would be taking home performance bonuses.
Fight of the night: Middleweight fighters Shara Magomedov and Marc-Andre Barriault each pocketed $50k for their thrilling war on today’s UFC Abu Dhabi main card. Shara Bullet ultimately won the contest by unanimous decision (30-27 x3).
Performance of the night: Steven Nguyen earned an extra $50k for his second-round TKO victory over Mohammad Yahya on today’s prelims. Nguyen scored a record 6 knockdowns before the fight was eventually called at the end of the second round.
STEVEN NGUYEN GETS THE WIN BY DOCTOR’S STOPPAGE AFTER SETTING A UFC RECORD SIX KNOCKDOWNS AT #UFCABUDHABI 💥 pic.twitter.com/i8DPfrvLYa
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 26, 2025
Performance of the night: Muslim Salikhov pocketed an extra $50k for his 42-second knockout victory over Carlos Leal.
MUSLIM SALIKHOV KNOCKS OUT CARLOS LEAL IN THE FIRST ROUND!!!! #UFCAbuDhabipic.twitter.com/EhvKiwJ8QJ
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) July 26, 2025
Are you surprised by any of the performance bonuses handed out by Dana White and company following the conclusion of this afternoon’s UFC Abu Dhabi event? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!
