The Octagon return to New Jersey for tonight’s UFC 316 pay-per-view event, and four fighters walked away with performance bonuses.
The fight card was headlined by a men’s bantamweight title fight rematch between Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley. The bout proved to be another dominant performance for the reigning and still champion Merab Dvalishvili. ‘The Machine’ was able to connect with some good shots on the feet, this while imposing his wresting on ‘Suga’ throughout the course of their rematch. Eventually, in the third round, Merab locked up a north-south choke which forced Sean O’Malley to tapout. It was a very impressive performance from the Georgian, one that had many of his peers calling him the bantamweight goat.
UFC 316 was co-headlined by a women’s bantamweight title fight between Julianna Pena and Kayla Harrison. The contest resulted in a dominant performance from the now new champion in Kayla Harrison. The former two-time Olympic gold medalist was able to overwhelm Julianna Pena on the canvas in both of the opening rounds, this before ultimately locking up a fight ending kimura submission hold. Following the impressive win, Harrison called out Amanda Nunes who proceeded to enter the cage for a faceoff. That fight will likely happen next and will surely be a highly anticipated showdown.
Following the conclusion of tonight’s event, UFC officials announced at the post-fight press conference that 4 fighters would be taking home performance bonuses.
Performance of the night: Merab Dvalishvili earned an extra $50k for his third-round submission victory over Sean O’Malley in tonight’s UFC 316 main event (see that here).
Performance of the night: Kayla Harrison pocketed an extra $50k for her impressive second-round submission victory over Julianna Pena (see that here).
Performance of the night: Kevin Holland earned an extra $50k for his second-round submission victory over Vicente Luque (see that here).
Performance of the night: Joo Sang Yoo pocketed an extra $50k for his 28-second knockout victory over Jeka Saragih on tonight’s prelims (see that KO here).
Are you surprised by any of the performance bonuses handed out by Dana White and company following the conclusion of tonight’s UFC 316 event in New Jersey? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!
