The 553rd UFC event, known variously as UFC Vegas 20, UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gane, UFC Fight Night 186, and UFC on ESPN+ 44 was held on Saturday, February 27, 2021, at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada.
In addition to being paid a fixed amount to show and another, usually equal amount to win, each UFC event also awards four $50,000 bonuses. Usually, there is a Fight of the Night for which both fighters are given a bonus, and a performance bonus is awarded to the winner in two other fights. For the record, “Performance Bonus” is for the moments that made you go “HOLY F@$%ING $#!@.” The card was short of them, so only three bonuses were awarded.
The winners are shown below, in bold.
$50,000 Fight of the Night
Pedro Munhoz defeated Jimmie Rivera by Unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
$50,000 Performance Bonus
Ronnie Lawrence defeated Vince Cachero by TKO (Punches, Round 3, 2:37)
This was the sole fight that ended inside the distance.
One of the primary differences between the UFC model and the boxing model is the depth of the card. Sometimes in MMA the greatest fight isn’t the main event, or close to it. However, at UFC Vegas 20, two of three bonuses went to the main card.
In addition, to the bonuses and purses, fighters earn:
•Reebok pay, ranging from $3,500 to $20,000 based on tenure, $30,000 for title challengers, and $40,000 for champions, for wearing the distinctive apparel during fight week and in the Octagon;
•Discretionary locker room bonuses of varying amounts averaging out to $5k per fighter per fight, which, despite their name, actually come in the mail now;
•In some cases there is an LOA (Letter of Agreement) on the contract for additional income; and,
•The most elite fighters get points on the pay-per-view for PPV events.
The next league event, UFC 259: Błachowicz vs. Adesanya, is the 554th event to date. It will be held on Saturday, March 6, 2021 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada,.
