On a night filled with exciting fights and finishes, Khamzat Chimaev’s stood out and was awarded a post-fight bonus after UFC 267.
Chimaev, fighting for the first time in 13 months, slammed Li Jingliang to the mat and screamed at UFC President Dana White before cinching a rear-naked choke in the first round of his main card bout. For the eye-catching performance, White rewarded the welterweight star with a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus.
A total of four bonuses were handed out after the event at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The other “Performance of the Night” check was handed out to headliner Glover Teixeira, who capped an incredible career turnaround with a win over Jan Blachowicz to capture the light heavyweight title at 42. Teixeira dominated the fight on the canvas and then rocked Blachowicz before finishing with a rear-naked choke.
The “Fight of the Night” bonus was an easy pick – the interim bantamweight title co-headliner between Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen was a “Fight of the Year” contender. Despite 49-46 scorecards for Yan, who set up an title unifier with champ Aljamain Sterling, the bout was a white-knuckle display of heart and technique from both fighters, who will each take home $50,000 for their efforts.
UFC President Dana White added that other fighters would receive additional bonuses, though he didn’t specify any names.
Here is the full list of UFC 267 bonuses:
Fight of the Night: Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen
Performance of the Night: Glover Teixeira, Khamzat Chimaev
