Some of the most heartwarming MMA stories in recent years have been the life-changing effects a post-fight bonus can make to a UFC fighter.
From Pat Barry suddenly receiving $120,000 after subsisting on rice and ketchup to Diego Brandao buying his mother a house after scoring two extra checks for his shocking submission victory over Dennis Bermudez, there are a whole lot of smiles that can be had with the UFC’s post-fight bonus system.
Unfortunately, rags-to-riches stories seem to happen far less often than they used to. Lately, we’ve seen much more in the way of riches to slightly more riches. Indeed, while post-fight bonuses were once the carrot on the end of a stick that motivated curtain-jerkers to push harder and dig deeper, they are mostly a $50,000 pat on the back for the promotion’s top names these days.
UFC Fight Night 60 demonstrated that fact quite well, as exciting flyweights Zach Makovsky and Tim Elliott stole the show not long after it began.
Makovsky is known for his inhuman quickness and explosive takedowns. Elliott is known for his scrappy attitude and don’t-ever-stop style. Expectations were high among the fans who knew who they were (neither man has name value, you see), and the fighters did not disappoint as they engaged in a fast-paced brawl that most would agree should have taken Fight of the Night honors.
Alas, “most” did not include the UFC brass in attendance for the Broomfield, Colorado, event. According to them, the Fight of the Night was the main event between former lightweight champ Benson Henderson and the locally grown Brandon Thatch.
The fight itself was solid, sure, as Henderson and Thatch flew across the cage with scary combinations before “Smooth” demonstrated his elite-level grappling skills with a crafty trip-from-behind takedown into a rear-naked choke.
And sure, both men deserved to have something extra added to their check, as Henderson took on an incredibly dangerous fight on two weeks’ notice and Thatch now finds his hype train sabotaged by an opponent he had no time to prepare for.
But was Henderson vs. Thatch the best, most entertaining bout of Fight Night 60 (which, last I checked, is pretty much the only criteria for determining the Fight of the Night bonus winner)? No.
This is not an especially new phenomenon, and gypping Makovsky and Elliott is far from the worst example of this phenomenon (that would go to Ronda Rousey getting a Performance of the Night bonus for her UFC 170 non-KO of Sara McMann instead of Mike Pyle or Erik Koch).
It also isn’t to say that Makovsky and Elliott didn’t earn some manner of undisclosed bonus, a common practice in the UFC. But the flyweights, in this case, deserved the bonuses and certainly need the prestige (and probably the money) more than the main-eventers.
Picking out which fighters receive post-fight bonuses is a task that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Using them to build up already established stars or reflexively giving them to frequent recipients just shouldn’t happen.
The Super Bowl MVP award has become a running gag in recent years, with the quarterback of the winning team almost always winning the honor regardless of how well he performs. Hopefully, the UFC can avoid that same pitfall.
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