When Stefan Struve wins, he often wins bonuses. This time he brought opponent Stipe Miocic along with him.
Struve and Miocic took home the Fight of the Night award for their main event bout at UFC on FUEL TV 5 at the Capital FM Arena in Nottingham, England, the UFC announced Saturday evening. They’ll pocket $40,000 each for their efforts. Struve brings his record to 25-5 and his consecutive UFC win streak to four fights. Miocic picks up his first professional loss, bringing his MMA ledger to 9-1.
Their bout started off better for Miocic as Struve failed to use his reach. Miocic landed multiple hard shots to the body and more effective strikes overall throughout the first round. In the second frame, however, Struve pumped his jab more and through increased output landed hard hooks and combinations. Struve had Miocic backing up against the fence before Miocic slipped on the mat. As he tried to right himself, Struve badly rocked him with a right straight. Seeing his opponent hurt and obviously off balance, Struve landed several more uppercuts before referee Herb Dean was forced to call a halt to the action.
This makes Struve’s fifth fight award, although it’s his first Fight of the Night bonus. He has three previous Submission of the Night bonuses and one for Knockout of the Night.
Speaking of Knockout of the Night, England’s own Brad Pickett earned this distinction for Saturday’s event, thereby picking up his sixth overall Zuffa post-fight bonus. Pickett landed an uppercut after a long wind-up, knocking out respected striker Yves Jabouin almost cold with that one shot.
Surprising many fans and experts, Matt Wiman submitted the submission-savvy Paul Sass and earned Submission of the Night for his efforts. After avoiding several submission attempts from Sass, Wiman eventually put Sass in a precarious spot for the armbar and forced Sass to grip his hands to avoid Wiman’s attack. Wiman fought through it, handing Sass his first professional loss and picking up his fifth UFC post-fight bonus.