UFC on FOX 25 Bonuses: Chris Weidman Snubbed
UFC on FOX 25 emanated from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York tonight (Saturday, July 22, 2017). The main card on network television was headlined by world-ranked middleweights Chris Weidman and Kelvin Gastelum, and the former champion Weidman got back to his winning ways in impressive fashion. But Weidman’s third-round submission victory was not enough to earn him a Performance of the Night bonus.
Those went to Junior Albini and Alex Oliveira. Heavyweight newcomer Albini boxed up the notoriously durable Tim Johnson on his way to a first-round TKO. The Brazilian Albini was able to thwart the takedown game of the wrestling-minded American and let his hand speed do the work. That work netted him an extra $50,000.
Oliveira, meanwhile, hit a walk-off knockout on Ryan LaFlare, who previously had never been finished. LaFlare controlled most of the first frame with wrestling and top-control, but was stuck on the feet in the second. As he rushed in to initiate a clinch, Oliveira nailed him with a flush right uppercut that sent LaFlare face-first to the canvas, immobile. “Cowboy” calmly walked away, knowing the fight was over and an extra $50,000 would be in his bank account tomorrow.
The Fight of the Night went to the barnburner between welterweight sluggers Lyman Good and Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos. The fight mostly took place on the feet, as the two men largely shut down each other’s takedowns. Good took the first frame with pressure, landing the cleaner punches, and taking dos Santos down. The second was close, as dos Santos landed more but Good landed the cleaner shots. Dos Santos seemed to take the third in a wild five minutes and garnered himself a split decision. Both men went home $50,000 richer for their efforts.
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