UFC Shanghai Bonuses: Gastelum, Jingliang Earn Extra $50,000
UFC Fight Night 122 emanated today (Saturday, November 25, 2017) from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China. The UFC Fight Pass show was headlined by a middleweight showdown between former title-holder and late replacement Michael Bisping and up-and-coming finisher Kelvin Gastelum.
Gastelum took care of business in emphatic and devastating fashion, knocking Bisping senseless with a left hook in the very first round. Gastelum was one of four men to pocket an extra $50,000 for their Performance of the Night efforts.
Co-headliner Li Jingliang also took home a bonus check for his first-round knockout of Zak Ottow in his home country. This time, it was a right hand through the guard that dropped the loser, and Jingliang swarmed with relentless ground and pound until the referee had seen enough. “The Leech” had the feel-good moment of the night as he ran into the crowd to kiss his wife and infant daughter, and he’ll go home $50k richer as well.
In the featured prelim and perhaps the most highly anticipated bout of the night, Zabit Magomedsharipov confirmed himself as more than a flashy kicker, but a bonafide blue-chip prospect. He ran a clinic on the tough and talented Sheymon Moraes, making his debut as the biggest underdog on the card. Magomedsharipov largely negated Moraes’ dangerous Muay Thai striking, taking him down at will and running a grappling clinic. Seemingly on a whim, the Dagestani finished Moraes with an anaconda choke in the third round. He, too, will have an extra $50,000 in his bank account come Monday morning.
Finally, 19-year-old Chinese featherweight prospect Song Yadong dominated Indian wrestler Bharat Kandare and finished him in the first round. Kandare never got in range to utilize his takedowns. Yadong pressured and landed heavy punches whenever his Indian counterpart threw. Yadong closed the show with a step-in right hand that floored his adversary, and when Kandare shot in for a desperate takedown, Yadong snatched a guillotine. The youngest fighter on the UFC roster will take home a nice payday with his $50,000 bonus check.
Keep it locked to LowKickMMA for all your UFC Shanghai post-fight news and notes.
