Four fighters walked away with $50,000 bonuses in a night filled
with finishes at
UFC on ESPN 62 on Saturday.
Veteran middleweight contender Jared
Cannonier and up-and-coming Brazilian Caio
Borralho (17-1) delivered as advertised in the UFC Vegas 96
headliner at The Apex in Las Vegas. While Borralho took the lead in
the first round, Cannonier regained some momentum as the fight
progressed. Both fighters rocked each other, going toe-to-toe in a
barnburner that had many online scorecards tied at two rounds each
way going into Round 5. Borralho knocked down Cannonier (17-8) a
final time in the last stanza to seal a unanimous decision victory.
Both fighters were awarded $50,000 for their “Fight of the Night”
performance.
Meanwhile, middleweight veteran Gerald
Meerschaert (37-17) received a “Performance of the Night” bonus
for his come-from-behind upset of Edmen
Shahbazyan (13-5). “GM 3” was dominated by Shahbazyan for the
better part of two rounds before he turned the tables by forcing a
tap with an arm triangle with less than a minute left in the second
period.
Undefeated welterweight prospect Michael
Morales (17-0) walked through divisional gatekeeper Neil Magny
(29-12) to earn the other POTN bonus. The second biggest betting
favorite on the card, Moraes knocked Magny down with a brutal elbow
and rained devastating ground-and-pound to secure a stoppage in the
final seconds of the opening frame.