TUF Live Finale poster
The Ultimate Fighting Championship promotion handed out two types of bonuses Friday night at The Palms, one went to fighters for their performances on “The Ultimate Fighter Live” reality series, and the other for “Fight Night” bonuses as part of the shows Finale.
“Fight Night” bonuses of $40,000, which were announced after last nights event, were handed down to Martin Kampmann, Michael Chiesa, John Cofer, and Justin Lawrence, who earned two bonuses.
“Knockout of the Night” went to Kampmann and Lawrence, while “TUF” winner Chiesa picked up “Submission of the Night”, and the “Fight of the Night” bonus went to Lawrence and Cofer for their work inside the cage.
Announced before “TUF” final between Mike Chiesa and Al Iquinta, bonuses for the “Season” of $25,000 were handed down to Iquinta, Joe Proctor and Myles Jury. Fan voting helped to choose the bonus winners for season fifteen of the reality television series.
Iquinta picked up his for “Best Knockout” for his first-round TKO finish of Andy Ogle, while fans awarded Iquinta and Jury for “Best Fight” for their split decision bout, and Proctor was awarded his for “Best Submission” after submitting Chris Tickle.
“The Ultimate Fighter Live: Finale” took place Friday night (June 1, 2012) at The Pearl in the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event saw the conclusion of Season Fifteen of “TUF” with Michael Chiesa submitting teammate Al Iquinta in the first round to capture the shows crown.
The event drew an attendance of 1,628 fans into The Pearl for a live gate of $195,250.
Kampmann earned another come-from-behind win by stopping Jake Ellenberger in the second round by knockout. Having survived the first round with a bloody nose, Kampmann landed a good right before gaining a Thai clinch and landing three big knees to end the fight.
Chiesa continued on his storybook run, after the emotional death of his father into the start of the reality show, by finishing Iaquinta with a rear-naked choke in the first. Chiesa walks away with a three-fight contract, a sponsor deal with TapouT, and a new Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
Lawrence picks up $80,000 after his slug fest with Cofer on the shows preliminary card. The two would take things into the third round where Lawrence would land a head-kick in the opening seconds to finish the fight by knockout.