Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler delivered on the hype in a big way at UFC 268.
The lightweights received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their slugfest at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday in a bout that will likely lead many “Fight of the Year” lists in the weeks to come. While Gaethje was rocked early in the first round, he maintained his composure and gradually pulled away from Chandler for an enthralling unanimous decision triumph.Meanwhile, on an evening that featured a number of memorable finishes, the Las Vegas-based promotion handed out a quartet of $50,000 “Performance of the Night” checks to deserving athletes.
Marlon Vera earned one of those bonuses on the strength of a front kick knockout of Frankie Edgar in a featured bantamweight clash. After two competitive rounds, Vera emphatically brought the show to a close at the 3:50 mark of Round 1, becoming just the eighth fighter in promotion history to win a bout via f…