Alex Pereira isn’t one to ask for much, and was happy to fill in for Conor McGregor on Saturday, alongside fellow short-notice headliner Jiri Prochazka, salvaging the UFC 303 main event.
As he noted post-fight, however, Pereira felt deserving of a post-fight bonus at UFC 300 in April, a card he also headlined. Also on short notice. In his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, after stopping Prochazka a second time, “Poatan” called for a Performance of the Night bonus – and this time, he got it.
The light heavyweight champ’s head kick finish, followed up with punches, secured him one of four Performance of the Night bonuses at UFC 303, with UFC President and CEO Dana White also awarding a Fight of the Night, for six bonus winners in total.
Also collecting Performance bonuses were Macy Chiasson, Payton Talbott, and Joe Pyfer. Talbot flatlined Yanis Ghemmouri, while Pyfer did the same to Marc-Andre Barriault. Chiasson, meanwhile, opened up a nasty cut on Mayra Bueno Silva with a vicious elbow; the cut later forced a doctor’s stoppage.
Fight of the Night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas went to Andre Fili vs. Cub Swanson, a bout that saw Fili earn a split decision victory.
The gate for UFC 303 turned out to be $15,909,243 per the promotion, a considerable drop from the $20 million plus that had been shelled out for Conor McGregor, but still good enough to be the fourth highest gate in UFC history.
